Iron Maiden - Powerslave [1984]

There's not a single metalhead out there that hasn't heard of Maiden and at least a few of their most essential songs, if not whole albums. Going strong and growing stronger with each release, Maiden forged an unbreakable barricade of classic albums, consecutively releasing five albums within just five years, starting from 1980's infamous ''Killers'', to this, their eternal and timeless classic, ''Powerslave'', an album so majestic that it's condemned to stay a virgin for infinity. Maiden already found the sound that would use for the next 9-10 years with ''The Number Of The Beast'', but on Powerslave, everything is established perfectly and every single detail is worked out masterfully; from Steve Harris's bumping, groovy bass line, to Nicko's simple yet balanced drumming, to the beautifully worked out harmonies and eccentric leads and melodies, to Bruce's dominating voice that soars over everything.

The songs are nothing extremely intricate really, but they're displayed so extravagantly that's its hard to omit them. The clean, warm atmosphere and production quality provides viability for the riffs and renders them clean, and melodies sound sharp and vigorous as they're calm and melodious, beautiful. Most verse sections of the songs are driven with power chords and typical NWOBH gallops and chugs, but an occasional narrating melody also seems to be prominent during certain passages. The luminous effect of the melodies is what makes this album so special, but the delivery is also fantastic as the songs never lack life energy or any sort of garnishment to improve themselves. The music is as soft as it can get, so there's really no need to add anything decorative into the mix, and as mellow tides of harmonious melodies effortlessly, swiftly roll into a catchy little gallop, you'll be too concerned with the efficiency of the music to give a fuck.

As important as encompassing aspects are, it's obvious that its the real musicianship here that makes the music special and the perfect adjustment of the delivery that disables any nitpicking. Seriously, how can a band be so effectively balanced and coordinated... and Maiden aren't even trying to be pretentious here. It's hooks are gripping yet so polite that you'll basically allow them attach themselves to your flesh, doubtless just another piece of meat out of many, many others who have fallen into the hooks of ''Powerslave''. The epic side of Maiden kicks in substantial amounts of time on this album, which is another difference from all the other albums, because on ''Powerslave'', copious amounts of riffs are choruses are driven into epic territory, and we have Bruce's amazing vocal work to thank for that. Take the chorus on the title track for example. A  canorous quartet of back up vocalists murmuring, while Bruce's voice soars on top of the main material, which is basically three durable power chords. Three fucking power chords, two back up vocalists and one, ear piercing tone soaring with resonance. Three fucking chords, people! It's absolutely perfect yet so simple, and you can't top that, no matter how hard you try.

The durability of the album keeps renewing itself as the album progresses, and you even keep the enhancement as you will be too baffled a listener to even notice. ''Aces High'' is an exceedingly robust start for the album, wherein thundering melodies of swiftly channel in and forth, as if moving on butter. Yes, butter. And its chorus has to be one of the best metal choruses ever written both music and lyric-wise.

''Run, live to fly, fly to live, do or die
Won't you run, fly to live
Live to fly, Aces High''

''Two Minutes To Midnight'' is a glamorous 70's metal flick, its swaggering array of bluesy riffs and excellent bridges never failing inconsistent, as well as pumping the old metal spirit up. ''Losfer Words ''(Big 'Orra) is a basically a beautiful churning of an abundance of melodies, sharp and is crisp all the time. ''Back In The Village'', ''Flash Of The Blade'' and ''The Duelists'' all embrace the catchy momentum of classic Maiden songs, each flailing out a nifty riffs with a slightly different demeanor of its own. The title track is dripping with mystery and cryptic hints of heavy metal, and most importantly, it stands as the first ever song to entwine with Egyptian subjects, hinted in both the lyrics and the music. The title track is dotted with tiny segments of groove laden arabic riffs and scales, and even Bruce's voice has adopted a sort of mystical, ominous tone to accompany the music. And the journey ends with a rather long exploration into the ocean with ''Rime Of The Ancient Mariner'', guiding its hefty body and over thirteen minute structure most delicately, swaggering with mid paced riffs, attached to each other with subtle melodies, right before breaking into a brooding, queer hiatus. Such a classic an timeless album this is, and there's no way it can lose its virginity, not in this world. You cannot call yourself a metalhead without listening to ''Powerslave'', this is the quintessence and essence of heavy metal, responsible for influencing a large amount of the genre. It will never die.

''Tell my I had to be a Powerslave
I don't wanna die, I'm a god,
Why can't I live on,
When the Life Giver dies,
All around is laid waste,
And in my last hour,
I am a slave to the Power of Death''

Highlights
''Powerslave''
''Flash Of The Blade''
''Rime Of The Ancient Mariner''
''Two Minutes To Midnight''
''Aces High''

Final Rating
Legendary [10/10]

Interment - Where Death Will Increase [1991] (Demo)

Some may know Interment from their recent album, and some may know them as one unknown pioneer of early Swedish old school death metal from their demo days. Interment was formed first as Beyond in 1988, then they changed their name and released three killer demos right before a lengthy hiatus, and today they're basically putting out the same stuff they were in the 90's, only maybe more intricate. While all of their demos are classics and imperatives in the Swedish death metal scene, it wouldn't be wrong to say that they didn't much of a diverse aroma to the scene as bands like Unleashed, Dismember and Entombed were already putting out superb release. Their first demo, ''Where Death Will Increase'', stands out as their most favored release among the small group of underground DM nerds, and it stands as the most important release in their career, too.

I feel many have already suffered the same old groove laden incursions of pure face melting punk-driven chainsaw madness, and scores of entrails have already been spilled to the floor by similar acts. It engraves itself upon a crusty pattern of morbid, ghastly death metal, and from its skeletal seat, it commands its freshly revived ghouls to strike and butcher all that is not morbid. The production is a fairly convincing as the demo prevails within the abyss created by it. The atmosphere is crucial here, and while the demo has little ambiance, there's still some left for the album to breathe blood and filth, so new riffs can spawn healthily. The crypt of ghouls now stands before you, and there's no turning back. The first track ''Morbid Death'' shakes you and pummels you into dust while it spreads some infectious grooves. The drum chokes are also worked up pretty well, and the riffs offer a beefy tone as well, so they sound hefty at all times. The music is extremely accessible as the main focus of the riffs are maiming thrash driven grooves and classic tremolo descents.

''Where Death Will Increase'' should butter you up easily as soon as it arrives but don't expect it to offer anything more than straightforward, thrash-injected Swedish death metal. Fans of Entombed, Grave and Nihilist will certainly love this little spectacle of nostalgia, dotted with a few queer twists and even some exuberant synthesizers delving into the demo. Interment crafted their weapons with simple, but cold and hard steel, no more inventive than the scores of bands out today, but this certainly does crush a good number of Swedeath worshipers, allowing the morbid atmosphere prevail throughout. Get this demo now and close your eyes so that you can be slammed into the graveyard dust, and just let yourself flow as putrefied cannibal ghouls and crypt fiends eagerly feast on your flesh.

Highlights
''Morbid Death''
''Cranial Putrefaction''
''Infestering Flesh''

Final Rating
Awesome [8.4/10]

Disciples Of Mockery - Prelude To Apocalypse [1999]

The late 90's weren't half as bountiful as the early 90's in terms of old school death metal, and that timeline mainly consisted of bands basically copying their elder masters and repeating the same style, and the funny part is, they weren't really pockets of bands coming out from the abyss. Some followed the path of the Swedish death metallers while some liked to toy with the despicable aesthetics that were originated by the almighty Incantation, a band which sprayed death and blasphemy throughout the 90's. My first impression of Disciples Of Mockery was simple: Incantation. But little did I know that the band actually consisted of former members of Incantation. Now, these are people who helped write and construct the astonishing masterpiece of horror and evil, ''Onward To Golgotha'', and obviously, much of early Incantation's style and haunting maliciousness flows in the veins of ''Prelude To Apocalypse'', so yes, get your hopes high about it.

It truly does fit in perfectly, ''Prelude To Apocalypse'' could have been the continuation of the infamous masterpiece, because it follows the exact path that ''Onward'' did, only with some nuances and slightly differing production quality. The riffs and riff patterns are blatant if you're familiar to Incantation (and who isn't?), spastic tremolo pickings with dual guitars performing eerie harmonies on top of the dense, chubby production quality. I can't say whether riffs stand out or not, though I can say that they vary from time to time. The shadowing tremolo sections may reign supreme as they outshine and outnumber any other style or aspect of the music, but sludgy passages of doom laden death metal is also a popular trend that keeps jumping into the intensified music. ''An Endless Pursuit For A Satisfying Pain'' is such a track where the whole of the riffs are set to move upon a sludgy track them lowers their velocity to turtle speed. And the third most prominent element used in the construction of the riffs is that black metal influence, a fluctuating current of chaos and sheer melancholy, but sections like these are limited compared to their counterparts.

Some may find the album too overwhelming and too boring or may tend to loose focus when aggression is omitted, especially when doom metal sections are preferred more, but for heav'n's sake people, that's the beauty of it! Passion is just as critical as brutality in albums like this, and its much harder a task to perfect it than perfecting aggression and raw energy. You get as brutal as you like, but if one attribute is excluded from the mixture of passion and melancholy, your whole experiment dies at your feet. ''Dogma'' is one track I have to suggest for death-oriented black metal fans, as it embraces the ancient art of black metal with a hint of death metal savagery and some additional heft. The drums is another notable gear while making the clockwork move viscously, they tend to create some excellent fills to link doom laden chords together. Overall, I doubt any fan of hefty doom, death or maybe even doom-driven black will hate this. ''Prelude To Apocalypse'' is yet another lost gem that bestirs doom, black and death metal bombastically.It's blasphemous, melancholic and filled with disdain. ''Onward To Golgotha 2'', I would say.

Highlights
''Literal Upheaval Of The Earth''
''God Of Love''
''Behold The Holy Virgin Whore''

Final Rating
Awesome [8.8/10]

Utumno - Across the Horizon [1993]

Utumno are quite the oddball death metal band to say the very least. Hailing from the land of death metal, Sweden, you would expect for them to at least sound somewhat similar to the majority of the punk-driven bands there, but they don't. Not one damn bit. This band is more likely to be compared to groups like Ripping Corpse, Sepultura, Revenant and Morbid Angel than they are Grave or Entombed. It's a shame that these guys never got anywhere past this six-track debut record, "Across the Horizon," because the amount of promise and talent that is found here is remarkable and likely could have pushed them to relative success in Sweden's death metal scene. 

With only six songs, Utumno does a fantastic job of mixing in so many different sounds that the shortness of the album becomes completely irrelevant. The opening track "The Light of Day" features some decent thrashy riffs that eventually turn into sludgy powerchords that are later accompanied by a grim narration and sinister melody, before turning into a riff-fest that encompasses early-Sepultura-like thrash riffs, insane bass lines and midpaced riffs that are damn-near as catchy as those produced by bands like Terrorizer and Bolt Thrower. "I Cross the Horizons" is one of the more "weird" tracks thanks to its eclectic mix of techy riffs and melodies, very similar to death/thrash legends like Ripping Corpse and Revenant. And "In Misery I Dwell" and "Saviour Reborn" are both death metal tunes of the highest caliber, as Stalhammar's vocals slay (His vocals sound a lot like a less gruff Max Cavalera), and the violent riffage crushes. 

Had the last two tracks "Sunrise" and "Emotions Run Cold" been as stellar as the four preceding tracks, then "Across the Horizon" would have undoubtedly been a pinnacle in the Swedish death metal scene. With so many bands trying to catch up to the giants in Dismember, Entombed, Unleashed, etc, Utumno was perfecting their craft of thrashy, yet atmospheric death metal that spanned the metal spectrum without sounding like a clusterfuck of influences. Had the band moved on to create a sophomore album, their ascension in the metal world would have been inevitable, and what a wonderful world that would be. 

Highlights

"The Light of Day"

"I Cross the Horizon"

"In Misery I Dwell"

Final Rating

Awesome [8.7/10]

Anal Vomit - Sudamerica Brutal [1998] (Demo)

When people think of old-school South American metal, they often look towards Brazil, with its rich and sparse underground scene, ranging from the obvious legends Sepultura and Sarcófago to underground black metal horde Mysitifier and death metal acts such as Krisiun and Headhunter D.C. It seems that a lot of metal fans have forgotten there are other countries in South America that feature great underground scenes, one of the most prominent being Peru; home to the filthy and barbaric underground horde that is Anal Vomit.

Anal Vomit has been around for a long time, forming way back in 1993 when I was a wee toddler and releasing their first demo tape in ’93 and still pumping releases out to this day. “Sudamerica Brutal” is their fourth demo, which was released in ’98 and was subsequently rereleased the next year on the “Sudamérica Brutal 1” split with Funeral (from Paraguay) and Carnarium (Argentina). It was also rereleased once again in 2011 on CD, featuring new artwork and two bonus tracks; this is the version I actually own, and so for the purposes of this particular site, I won’t be mentioning the bonus tracks again in this review.

Anal Vomit play a very raw and old-school blend of straightforward South American black/death/thrash, most obviously influenced by Sarcófago and Vulcano as well as the other usual suspects. The music is really filthy and energetic, featuring one of the most insane drummers I’ve heard, the guy is a total maniac! The riffs are all over the place, yet still follow the song structures, having a “controlled chaos” type effect on the songs. The bassist/vocalist reminds me of the possessed missing link between young Tom Angelripper and Wagner Antichrist, having one of the most bestial and aggressive deathrash voices I’ve ever come across! It’s these very elements that have allowed Anal Vomit to become a recent favourite of mine. 

The production is exactly what you would expect from this type of bestiality: filthy, raw and completely merciless! The mix is surprisingly bass-heavy, which strives to help Anal Vomit stand out from the other rotten hordes paying tribute to ancient South American death cults. Whilst the mix is very raw, you can still hear every instrument clearly and tell what’s going on in each track. What more could you want from a band that worships at the altar of Sarcófago, Vulcano, Possessed, Sodom and the like?

Anal Vomit is a must-listen for fans of old-school South American terror. It is bands like this that separate the men from the boys and put hair on your pasty suburban chest. Falses need not entry.

Highlights:

Into the Eternal Agony

Slaved Mind

Kingdom of the Cruelty

Final Rating:

8.5/10 Awesome.

Beherit – Drawing Down the Moon [1993]

Finnish black metal legends Beherit formed in 1989 and have since released a ton of demos and EPs, a couple of compilations, two dark ambient albums and three black metal albums. “Drawing down the Moon” was their first full length released, but their “official” debut album was “At the Devil’s Studio 1990”, which finally saw the light of day in June 2011. A confusing discography, I know, but bear with me as I discuss their most well known album “Drawing down the Moon”.

Recorded in between April and September 1992 but released in November 1993 and produced by the bands’ guitarist, vocalist and keyboardist; Nuclear Holocausto Vengeance, “Drawing down the Moon” is a bit of a departure from their earlier, more straightforward and bestial, work featured on “The Oath of Black Blood” and “At the Devil’s Studio 1990” in that it’s mostly mid-to-slow-paced as opposed to the more fast-paced songs displayed on previous releases and features ambient interludes previously not present. 

The music itself is pretty unique compared to most other black metal released around the same time, and very different to anything that was going on in Norway and Sweden at the time. The guitars often take a step back and mix in with the vocals and drums to produce a “wall of sound” type effect, and there are also moments where slow and mournful melodies are used to pull the listener into a different state of mind before changing it up and assaulting you with more violent bestiality. Special mention has to be made for the vocals, which are generally low the mid-range growls mixed in with some weird clean sections and ritualistic chanting as well as the occasional spoken word piece. The influence of bands such as Sarcófago, Blasphemy and Sadistik Exekution are still ever-present in the music and always an underlying factor in the slower parts and ambient passages, which just goes to show that Beherit were generally more forward-thinking and experimental than their peers at the time, having crafting something that still employs a barbaric and primitive approach while creating a very eerie, dark and sinister atmosphere channeling different techniques such as keyboards and ambiance effectively.

This album is truly something special to behold, and is best viewed as a singular epic piece of music rather than a collection of individual songs. An essential black metal classic if there ever was one!

Highlights:

Salomon's Gate

The Gate of Nanna

Werewolf, Semen and Blood

Final Rating:

10.0/10 Legendary

Blasphemy – Fallen Angel of Doom… [1990]

Blasphemy is one of Canada’s most legendary bands, and one of the most influential and important black/death metal bands of all time. Formed in 1984, the band have unfortunately only ever put out four releases; their first demo “Blood Upon the Alter”, their debut full length “Fallen Angel of Doom…”, sophomore album “Gods of War” and a live album, each one a cut above the rest in terms of barbaric savagery. Right now, I’m going to ramble on about their amazing debut album…

Before going on, I will issue a warning: If you can’t handle raw and primitive black metal fueled by a healthy dose of death metal, extreme power and pure hatred, stop reading now. “FAOD” is by far one of the most primitive and extreme sounding records of all time, and it’s not for the faint of heart. To a lot of listeners, this album WILL sound like mush, due to the low-budget production job, but after spending some time with it you’ll begin to notice little details such as the bass heavy guitar tone, the pounding drum work, some of the sickest and most hateful vocals ever and the killer solos spread between some really interesting yet still primitive as fuck riffs. These songs are clearly the product of an eerie obsession with Sarcófago’s “I.N.R.I.”, the first Possessed album, mid-80’s Sodom and early Bathory. 

It’s impossible to deny the influence of such a great record. Songs like the title track, “Desecration”, the often covered “Ritual”, “Demoniac” and “Goddess of Perversity” really speak for themselves and there’s not much more to be said about “Fallen Angel of Doom…” except that it really is a must hear for a serious underground black or death metal fan and quite possibly the greatest extreme metal album of all time.

Highlights:
Ritual
Demoniac
Goddess of Perversity

Final Rating:
Legenadary 10.0/10