Tornado/Black President/WormHoleDeath Records/2015 CD Review

  Tornado  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  a  mixture  of  glam,  sleaze  and  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Black  President"  which  was  released  by  WormHoleDeath  Records.

  A  very  hard  and  heavy  thrash  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  semi  melodic  vocals  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  solos  and  leads  and  the  music  also  has  a  punk  edge  at  times  while  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Back  up  gang  shouts  can  be  heard  in  certain sections  of  the  recording  along  with  some  sleaze  and  glam  metal  influences  and  while  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  the  production  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  modern  day  feeling  and  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  amount  of  melody  in  the  guitar  riffing  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  samples  and  some  of  the  songs  also  add  in  a  few  whispers  and  all  of  the  tracks  stick  to  a  heavier  musical  direction  from  beginning  to  end  of  the  recording.

  Tornado  plays  an  updated  style  of  80's  thrash  metal  and  also  brings  in  a  touch  of  glam  and  sleaze  metal  in  some  songs  while  the  music  is  too  heavy  to  fit  in  that  category,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  violent,  angry  and  hateful  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Tornado  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  glam,  sleaze  and  thrash  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "I,  Individual"  "David  &  Goliath"  "Under  The  Crimson  Moon"  and  "Ghetto  Wasteland".  8  out  of  10.  

Anthropia Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?

Hi everyone! Well, after a lot of work, “Non-Euclidean Spaces” is finally released. We are currently in the promotion step and everything is going smoothly. Feedback is already great!

2.Recently you have released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
I'd say it's a good mix of power and progressive metal, with some classical music elements. As a classical guitar player, it was a real pleasure to try to turn my favorite tunes in a metal way,
it's clearly one of our specificities. We also have 2 singers : first Nathalie who takes care of most of the vocal parts, and myself.

3.This is the first full length to be released in 6 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time frame?

Well, we all had a lot to do during those years, especially other musical projects to take care of. That's why Anthropia was a bit delayed in the process. But we also took all our time to study Lovecraft’s work and to give the best album possible.

4.The lyrics are based on the writings of H.P Lovecraft, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this author?

I've always been a Lovecraft fan and this since my teenage years. I read all the short stories, played to all the related board games, card games... Also mastered some role playing games too! I especially love the atmosphere of this universe and the background around it : 1920's, magic, curses, old cults worshipping ancient forgotten gods... Just love the ideas around it. It's quite the same for the other band members, I remember some very good Arkham Horror games with them!

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Anthropia'?

It of course comes from entropia. It's a physical concept I discovered during my studies ; it measures the disorder at microscopic level in a manner of speaking. I found that merging it with Greek prefix anthros (man), was quite a good idea, to illustrate how destructive human beings can be: they can indeed create the biggest disorders.

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
We performed some very good shows for the first Anthropia albums, particularly one with Magnum some years ago in Paris (Trabendo). It was a great souvenir, there are some videos on Youtube. We also shot an acoustic show in 2010 to release “Acoustic Reactions”, with some songs from “The Chain Reaction” but also some covers (for example Wasted Years, Iron Maiden). You can again find all those videos on Youtube.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?
It’s sad, but nothing is scheduled as we speak… but everything’s possible, so who knows? J

8.Currently the band is signed to Adarca Records, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
We actually created this label to release Anthropia albums. We were a bit tired of asking labels to take a look on Anthropia : with all due respect, they don't have the time or money to put to grow new bands. So we are our own label now, and I must say that I really like the concept. We can take our time to release albums, and even if it is a lot of work, we're totally free. It’s priceless for me.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer music by fans of metal?
We already get great feedback for our previous studio album “The Chain Reaction”, it was even “Album of the month” in the biggest metal magazine in France, RockHard. I must say that we received a lot of messages the last 5 years, to know when its successor is coming. This cheering was quite helpful for us, it gave us the strength to finish asap “Non-Euclidean Spaces”. As we speak, we already get 8-10 reviews, all going from very good to great. I couldn’t be happier!

10.Are any of the band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?
Yes, we all have/had other projects at some point. Nath and Yann got cover bands (Cold Train, Acid Rain, Karma…), they play very often on the French Riviera. Julien is also a member of Lord of Mushrooms and of Ivrogne Maiden, a great cover band of you-know-who. Finally Damien works as a sound engineer in Los Angeles. He -of course- took care of Non-Euclidean Spaces, but also of many albums from famous artists (Fear Factory, Almah,…).

11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
I have some good ideas about it, but it’s quite early to talk about it. What is certain is that I’d like to continue merging classical guitar with metal, I really like the concept. There are so many amazing guitar pieces waiting to be adapted in a metal way J

12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
Actually, I’m not listening to a lot of “new bands” these days. I’m pretty convinced that some of them are great, but I just don’t have the time to listen to them. My main influences are of course prog metal bands like Symphony X, Pain Of Salvation, Opeth… and of course Ayreon, and all the projects of Arjen Lucassen. His new one The Gentle Storm is really great! On the classical music side, I can mention here Heitor Villa-Lobos, a great Brazilian composer, and Roland Dyens, an amazing french one. I borrowed them 2 tunes on Non Euclidean Spaces : Etude 11(Villa-Lobos) for Silver Twilight Lodge and Fuoco from Dyens. Roland has personally approved our cover, which is a great satisfaction to me.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?
Well, I have a lot of hobbies. Unfortunately, there are only 24 hours in a day, so I can’t do it very often J. I like playing board games a lot, essentially in the Cthulhu Mythos universe of course! I also love books, movies and stays in the countryside.

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Well, thank you, and I hope your readers will enjoy the album. It was really a lot of work but we’re now very proud of what we have done. You can get it on all digital platforms, and on Digipak mainly on our site: http://www.adarca.com/store. Cheers!

Deathblow/The Other Side Of Darkness/2015 EP Review

  Deathblow  are  a  band  from  Salt  lake  City,  Utah  that  plays  a  very  fast  and  aggressive  form  of  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2015  ep  "The  Other  Side  Of  Darkness"  which  will  be  released  in  April.

  A  very  heavy  and  aggressive  thrash  metal  sound  starts  off  the  ep  and  also  adds  in  melody  at  times  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  aggressive  vocals  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  some  of  the  screams  have  almost  a  death  metal  feeling  to  them  at  times.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  while  the  musical  style  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  80's  the  production  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  modern  day  feeling  and  the  solos  and  leads  that  band  uses  also  remain  true  to  an  old  school  thrash  metal  sound  and  the  whole  ep  also  remains  heavy  from  beginning  to  end  of  the  recording.

  Deathblow  plays  a  style  of  thrash  that  is  very  heavy,  aggressive  and  brutal  sounding  while  also  using  melodies  at  times,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  war,  humanity  and  eugenics.

  In  my  opinion  Deathblow  are  a  very  great  sounding  fast  and  aggressive  thrash  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Means  To  An  End"  and  "Death  Wish".  8  out  of  10.

YDI/A Place In The Sun/Black Dust/Southern Lord Recordings/2015 Compilation Album Review

  YDI  where  a  band  from  Pennsylvania  that  played  a  very  speed  obsessed  form  of  hardcore  with  some  elements  of  punk  and  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  compilation  album  "A  Place  In  The  Sun/Black  Dust"  which  will  be  released  in  April  by  Southern  Lord  Recordings  and  consists  of  there  whole  discography  from 1983   to  1985.

  A  very  raw  and  heavy  80's  era  hardcore  punk  sound  starts  off  the  compilation  before  speeding  up  and  adding  in  blast  beats  and  aggressive  shouting  vocals  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  a  great  amount  of  raw  aggression  and  most  of  the  songs  are  very  short  in  length.

  At  time s the  music  has  almost  a  garage  like  feeling  and  all  of  the  instruments  on  the  compilation  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  a  good  amount  of  the  tracks  bring  in  an  early  punk  sound  but  done  with  more  aggression  and  as  the  compilation  progresses  guitar  leads  can  be  heard  at  times  and  they  also  remain  true  to  a  raw  style  of  hardcore  punk.

  Back  up  shouting  vocals  can  be  heard  on  some  of  the  tracks  and  on  some  of  the  songs  the  vocals get  semi  melodic  at  times  and  all  3  of  the  releases  they  had  in  83  that  are  present  on  this  compilation  stick  to  a  very  raw  musical  style  and   when  the  compilation  goes  into  the  85  material  more  thrash  and  metal  influences  are  added  into  the  bands  musical  styles  and  the  songs  also  start  getting  a  lot  more  heavier.  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  start  to  get  longer  in  length  and  one of  the  songs  also  brings  in  a  brief  use  of  clean  playing  before  making  a  return  back  to  a  heavier  direction.

  YDI  where  very  underrated  for  their  time  and  they  bring  all  of  their  songs  onto  the  compilation  and  you can  hear  everything  from  their  raw  and  fast  hardcore  punk  songs  to  the  later  material  which  was  more  metallic  and  also  had  more  structured  songs,  the  production  on  these  recordings  sounds  very  raw  for  the  era  it  was  recorded  while  the  lyrics  cover  violent  and  hateful  themes.

  In  my  opinion  YDI  where  a  very  great  sounding  hardcore  punk  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  compilation.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Out  For  Blood"  "I  Killed  My  Family"  "Haunted  House"  and  "Black  Dust".  8  out  of  10.        

Steel Inferno Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

We formed the band back in early 2012. Krzysztof (our drummer) and I have been playing together for many years but around that time we started to look for people to form an old school metal band. We hooked up with our bassist Thierry who was already part of our rehearsal room back then but did not have a band. We then put out an ad and our singer Karen luckily replied. That is when the music started taking form. We tried and tested numerous guitar players before we found Patrick who had been playing with Karen in a hard rock cover band before that. That was around august 2013.

2.In 2014 you had released both a demo and a single, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both recordings?

We recorded both at our own studio. Our demo was mixed and mastered by a friend of Patrick in Greece and with our single we made the production ourselves with some help from a good friend - who also designed the cover. Sound wise we try to keep it simple and raw. Modern metal has a tendency to get too produced and sound too fat. We like the sound a little gritty. Basically we just mic up a boosted Marshall with an SM57 and record one or two guitar layers in each side. We do not try to sound like anything specifically.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

We cover a lot of topics. Anti-dogmatism, war, politics, human behaviour, mankind, urban planning and de-industrialisation just to name a few.

We try at one side to be true to a classic metal approach on lyrics and yet try to develop our own approach.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Steel Inferno'?

I came up with the name because it sounded cool and it screamed heavy metal. First it was meant as a name for a side project but then it ended up becoming the one and only band.

5.While the band is based on Denmark some of the other band members come from Greece, France and Poland, do you feel the metal culture in each country is different from each other?

None of the other members are part of the scenes in their old countries any longer. So it would be memories from their youth concerning the present scene. But the short answer would be yes. In Denmark it is not unusual that people with good jobs - with suit and tie - also listens to metal.

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Our last two shows have been really great. Mainly because we feel much more confident playing live. We have only played around 6-7 shows and only some of of us had experience playing live shows. Krzysztof and I used to play in a band before which played live a lot. Before our first show our bass player Thierry had not played live for 20 years. Karen and Patrick had very little live experience.

We love playing metal so we try to share our enthusiasm with the audience. We look happy on stage. We are not very good at doing choreography but we try as good as we can. We are not a shoegazer band.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

Some of us have steady jobs and families so we cannot take out several weeks for touring. But we are definitely planning to get outside of Denmark. We would really like to play some of the festivals in Europe. And of course we would like to be big in Japan too!

8.According to the metal archives page the band is signed to Wargame Records, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

It is a small DIY label run by two really nice punks who bought a tape pressing machine for releasing cool underground stuff. When we were about to release our demo tape we got in contact with them because we were looking for a place to do a our debut show. And they offered  to release the tape and we agreed. We never signed anything. We just agreed to press 100 tapes. It helped us getting started. But we do not have a record deal or anything with them. We are still considering all options for our full length.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of heavy metal?

It is been amazing. We have had people contacting us from Chile, Malaysia, France, Greece and all sorts of places. It is fantastic when people you've never been in contact with suddenly discovers your music and starts spreading the word. And before you know it, you are doing your first interview. Which happens to be this one.

10.When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We are currently recording our first album. We do it step by step at our own studio. We will have everything ready before this summer. It should be ready either early or late summer. We have not made all the arrangements concerning post-production yet.

Musically you can expect an album with very diverse songs. We got faster speed metal oriented songs, slower and heavier stuff and also some song which are way more melodic than we have done before.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Personally I grew up with death and thrash metal. But from late 90s and 10 years ahead I mainly listened to hardcore and punk. Krzysztof also has a background in punk. But the last 5-10 years my interest has been classic metal. Both new and old bands. From the old school I would mention Accept, Judas Priest, early Slayer and Metal Church. I really dig the period when heavy metal turned speed metal - before it became thrash. I also got a soft spot for 80s pop music when drunk. But don’t tell.

There are quite a few newer bands playing classic metal. Among my favorites are Skelator, Enforcer and Ranger. Right now I am really looking forward to receiving the new Visigoth. I could go on for a long time about great music.

But there is not one band or style that we try to copy. I just write songs that I like.

Patrick listens to to almost everything except reggae and hip-hop but mostly classic heavy metal. His big loves are Thin Lizzy and (the old) Helloween. Karen has been wanting to sing rock and metal for the last 20 years. One of her inspirations is Skin from Skunk Anansie.But she wanted to sing something less nice.  She has listened to a lot of melodic metal. Some of her metal inspirations are Bruce Dickinson and Rob Halford. She listens to newer metal and hard rock like Halestorm, Korn, Avenged Sevenfold and Corroded. She also has a passion for 80s and 90s pop. Thierry really digs all sorts of power metal and progressive metal. Rhapsody, Sabaton, Dream Theater and of course Rush.Krzysztof is into all sorts of music but he really digs old polish punk like Siekera and Post-Regiment.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?
I don’t have time for much else than music, work and family. We all enjoy concerts. Karen is into role playing. Krzysztof and Patrick are into fishing. Patrick also plays a lot of video games.

13. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
We really want to thank you for showing an interest in our band. It is all the bloggers and local promoters that is keeping the underground scene alive. It is so easy to put music out on the internet. But without the dedication of the metalheads around the world it would never any airplay.

Mentally Defiled Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?
Album’s release was arranged to be the same day we supported TANKARD’s gig in Athens. We couldn’t possibly find a better way to celebrate our new CD. Since that we had a couple of gigs to promote it here and there, with some more to follow soon. Plus we await for the release in other formats as well; in vinyl and tape.

2.In December you had released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
Well there are differences, for sure. “The Thrash Brigade” - our debut - was a mixture of 75% thrash and 25% of heavy/speed metal. “Aptitude For Elimination” on the other hand is 100% pure thrash. Faster, more aggressive and straightforward than any other recording we ever did.  

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
Our lyrical approach is more “earthly”. I mean it’s OK to have satanic and “evil” themes (it’s always been a big inspiration for thrash bands), but if we wanted to refer to phantasy, demons, angels and unicorns we would play epic metal instead. We prefer to talk about society, modern civilization downfall, military and politic exploits upon human rights etc. In addition to cheer up we occasionally refer to alcohol, horror movies and football – those ought to be every thrasher’s concern right?

4.Originally this band started out as a cover band, what was the decision behind taking it to the next level and writing your own material?
When I teamed up with Alex and George back in 2001, we were all teenagers. Our first concern was to listen, understand and assimilate music. Nowadays youth rushes into forming bands, playing their music, without having the “education” for it. Anyway, since we liked covering, I think that the next step followed normally – leading to our first own tracks. I was “Mosh Pit Maniac” if I can remember right.

5.The band has been around since 2001 but waited until 2009 to release any music, can you tell us a little bit more about the first 8 years?
As it was mentioned, we started as a cover band. Never rushed into going on stage, recording, touring etc. We liked our music fast, not our pace with the band, cause thrash is supposed to be fun first of all and not a race! Ok I admit it took us a while for a full length, but we had some members in/out of the band, plus some (mandatory in Greece) military obligations.

6.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Mentally Defiled'?
Modern society’s idea for a “respectable” and normal mentality is to follow act and think according to some rules. We strongly oppose and despise those beliefs, we want our mentality brainwash free and our own. Mentally Defiled in other words.

7.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Our very first show was one of most memorable, because many people (the band included) were really looking forward to it. Besides this one, every show we’ve played was unique, we play like there’s no tomorrow (Alcohol and high speed tunes helps in that I guess). I remember every single show we played (Although alcohol does NOT help in that), but more vividly those with EXUMER, DEATHHAMMER, MORBID SAINT, TANKARD and D.R.I. where Harald (this lunatic bassist), rushed into the stage out of the blue, and singed along a Suicidal Tendencies cover.

8.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
We’ve completed a mini tour here in Greece, while another gig is planned in a month with some fellow local bands. For the future we have some offers for some shows abroad, but nothing’s yet confirm.

9.The new album was released on Violent Solution, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
Jim, the guy behind “Violent Solution”, was a big help for the band, before the label was even formed and was working as “Athens Thrash Attack”. His offer with the CD release was really generous and he will also participate in the vinyl release along with “Weird Face Productions” label. “VSR” is a new label, although it has a strong background. We’re glad we worked together.

10.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of thrash metal?
It’s great to receive so many positive reviews and feedback, but it’s awesome that their origin comes from countries so far away like Poland, Serbia, Italy, Spain, UK, USA, Bolivia, Thailand, Russia and many others. In some cases the authors of some reviews were exaggerating giving us a 99/100 or a 10/10, marks that I thing only suit for classic thrash gems and not new releases influenced by those! We really thank those guys anyway, as well as the “common” thrashers that showed us their support by purchasing our CD. Cheers to all!

11.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part off?
In our current lineup only me and John participate in other bands and projects, but there’s no conflict on our obligations with Mentally Defiled. We plan carefully and thrash punctually!!

12.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We will always play humble, pure, non-plastic/modern/commercial thrash metal, that’s for sure!  In this genre hasn’t been much progress though years though, but we do not care. We will remain “Soldiers of the underground” as our relevant track describes!

13.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
Our spectrum of influences varies. We listen from classic rock and heavy metal (the beginning of it all) up to hardcore punk and grindcore. All those mixed and blended under a “thrashy distillery” end result to the sound of Mentally Defiled. Bands are too many to mention, sorry!

14.What are some of your non musical interests?
We love alcoholic beverages, junk food (although we sport and practice martial arts once in a while), horror/splatter (trash) movies and we are dedicated to some GEEK activities like Card gaming (MTG), PC gaming and pen and paper board games of course. (And yes - having girlfriends combined with all of those leave us also surprised!)

15.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Have a listen to our new (and old) stuff. Download, buy, steal or borrow it. If you like it, don’t forget to show us some love. If you don’t like it you probably know nothing of music, we’ll find you, beat and rape you. Then burn you, extinguish you with our urine and rape you again. CHEERS TO ALL – THRASH ‘TILL AFTERLIFE!

Blackning/Order Of Chaos/Hecatombe Records/2015 CD Review

  Blackning  are  a  band  from  Brazil  that  plays  an  early  90's  style  of  Brazilian  thrash  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of t heir  2015  album  "Order  Of  Chaos"  which  will  be  released  in  April b y  Heacatombe  Records.

  Acoustic  guitar  playing  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  drum  beats  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavy  thrash  metal  direction  which  also  show s melodic  guitar  leads  becoming  a  huge  part  of  the  recording  and  after  awhile  the  music  starts  getting  very  fast  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  when  vocals  are  added  into  the  music  they  are  aggressive  shouting  style  vocals.

  At  times  the  music  almost  has  the  heaviness  of  death  metal  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  songs  bring  back  an  early  90's  style  of  thrash that  was  too  heavy  for  the  more  mainstream  sound  of the  genre  but  done  with  more  of  a  modern  day  production  and  as  the  album  progresses  some  of  the  riffs  start  bringing  in  small  amounts  of  melody  and  spoken  word  parts  and  they  close  the  album  with  a  cover  of  Overdose's  "Children  Of  War".

  Blackning  plays  a  style  that  shows  how  brutal  the  genre  can  get  at  times  as  well  as  adding  in  a  touch  of  death  metal  to  create  a  very  aggressive  sounding  recording,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the lyrics  cover  violent  and  hateful  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Blackning  are  a  very  great  sounding  brutal  thrash  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Thy  Will  Be  Done"  "Against  All"  "Censored  Season"  and  "Children  Of  War".  8  out  of  10.