Evil Priest-Demo Ep (2016)

Evil Priest mixed the relentless thrashy aggression and riffage of floridian death metal with a healthy dose of swedish death metal. This demo kicks in with a brutal song... then you hear it... that GUITAR TONE. Damnit, this band has one of the best guitar tones ever heard in death metal in 2016. It's heavy as fuck, really low-tuned and sounds more evil than any actual metal band. Then the three songs carries on, with sheer brutality attacking you from every corner, while singer vomits his inhuman old-school growls without allowing you to breathe. Riff after riff, there is no stop to this monster of a demo. The drumming is top-notch as well; Really powerful and aggressive blastbeats that go along with a great technique. Incredible. Evil Priest manage to be relentlessly aggressive and atmospheric at the same time, without decaying in melodic death metal. The guitar work is damn good. Overall, this demo is an essential piece on the Peruvian death metal puzzle. You like death metal? Then OWN IT, it will destroy your fucking skull !!
facebook.com/EvilPriestDeathMetal
www.cavernaabismal.com
Review by Paul Caravasi

Sacred Gate-Countdown to Armageddon (2016)

This album is one massively impressive dose of metal, mixing equal parts traditional, power, and prog, creating a work that is easily powerful. You see, the charming thing about Sacred Gate is that they really are a traditional metal act espousing hints of progressive tendencies - how many times have you heard that and found it to be utter crap? Sacred Gate no means a clone of anything. A very solid release.Things are kept interesting via a varying tempo, so you've got your mid-paced tunes, your double-bass-fueled ones, and so on.  It's obvious these guys are very talented. If you like melodic bands like Jag Panzer, Iron Maiden, Hammerfall, and Iced Earth you would like this.
facebook.com/sacredgatemetal
metal-on-metal.com
Review by Paul Caravasi

Metal Law-Hellrider (2016)

I recently came across Metal Law and realized that they're a kick ass band. If you're looking for screaming, raging heavy metal , this is what you're looking for. There's some really cool riffs thrown throughout, a lot of killer drumming, and consistent vocals. These are the kinds of musicians I admire, what they do do is show they have raw energy and actual talent. If you admire raw energy and plodding riffs then you will probably like this, a lot. Metal Law is a strong band for metalhead's who admire really good music. Pick this up and embrace the metal warrior in you!
www.facebook.com/metallawmusic
metal-on-metal.com
Review by Paul Caravasi

Attacker-Sins of the World (2016)

Cutting-edge straightforward Heavy Metal. Fresh and energetic. The production is crisp and clean, but still Heavy. The musicians are very skilled, the fellow who plays bass for Attacker definitely knows how to work a bass guitar.The drummer is also excellent, this dude can bash the skins!! The voice is killer, and the two guitar players are also VERY good. I like guitar players who have the ability to switch back and forth during solos. The writing is also good. The songs aren't about how many women they may have banged, or how much whisky they drank. Topics are all good stuff. The musicians in this band show their talent. If you like good metal musicians and a CD that can be played at the highest volume from start to finish, I recommend purchasing this disc. Oh, yeah, this CD has one of my favorite cover illustrations. Definitely cool! Trust me, if you like DIO, Judas Priest, or Iron Maiden, you'll love this album!
www.facebook.com/AttackerBand
metal-on-metal.com
Review by Paul Caravasi

Metal Massacre 14-(2016)

I sit here with beer in hand enjoying this compilation and writing this review. Bands here are amazing. Metalian is an awesome Heavy metal, Noctum is good , Gatekeeper rules here, Assassin's blade sounds awesome with their traditional heavy metal, Cobra is a killer speed metal band, Stone dagger is decent heavy metal, Crypt Sermon is doom in the vein of Candlemass, Savage Master is awesome heavy metal to the vein, Outcast traditional heavy metal, Corsair is another amazing band here , great musicianship. Overall, if you are looking to see what underground metal is all about, pick this up. There's some underrated and overlooked gems on this, powerful vocals and riffing. Another fantastic collection of vintage heavy metal by Metal Blade Records. Good job guys !!
www.metalblade.com
Review by Paul Caravasi

Primordial-Gods to the Godless-Live at Bang Your Head Festival/Germany 2015

The songs on offer here are instantly just that little bit different to the original versions, a decent amount of energy and really does roll things on brilliantly. If you're like me and enjoy live albums of bands that you like, then this is for you. The band has perefected the art of playing live, or at least on this live record. That is they have perfected playing imperfectly. Some bands can't reproduce what they have 30 takes in a studio live and end up just slaughtering their songs. Some bands play to well, to the point of perfection, where the songs on the live album are so similiar to the songs on the studio album.This album combines the greatness of the songs, with live imperfection and energy making one great experience. The tracks on this album offer something different than on their respective studio albums they are found on. In short this is about as good as it gets for a live album –  there are some quite good versions of damn good songs on here, so enjoy.
www.metalblade.com
www.facebook.com/primordialofficial
Review by Paul Caravasi

Downfall of Gaia-Atrophy (2016)

Clean production solely for the purpose of enhancing the musical experience, something that I personally rarely enjoy, maybe even only in the case of Black Metal. Anyway…it seems to me that if even one single note or drum beat were different the whole thing would fall together and fail completely for the listener. This is an album one does not merely listen to, one is just fascinated. Fascinated by the incredible precision, the atmosphere of this CD,  the guitars turn to a furious fusion with the drums and bass, the vocals....just really “imperial”, fabulous riffs I have ever endured in BM, accompanied by the drums, the songs flows from one riff to another, in perfect harmony with incredible musicianship, this is furious and very emotional....a ferocious outburst of musical fireworks and uncontrollable emotions. Higher up I mentioned that this CD clearly isn’t for everyone - in fact, I believe it can only be fully appreciated by the chosen few who can understand it. Its so complex and varying at times. I think it can only be loved by those who really feel extreme music in their veins. This is by no means a “light” album. So, I come to the conclusion that this CD is sheer genius, great overall atmosphere and musicianship, yet clearly not for all, I’d like to finish this review with first off saying that this album kicks fucking ass. “All mortals should respect bands like this, not make into a trend!”.
www.metalblade.com
downfallofgaia.com
Review by Paul Caravasi

King Diamond-The Spider Lullabye ( 2015-Remaster)

I have to say this is the most melodic release from King Diamond. But i guess the lack of recognition of this album is mainly due it not being a full concept album and the fact that the story itself is pretty straight forward and uncomplicated as opposed to his previous releases like Abigail and "Them". Still, I think the songs here are beautifully done well and the keyboards are utterly fantastic.
From The Other Side - You have no choice but to keep your ears glued to the speaker. If not for the solo, I'd have to say that the amazingly melodic and catchy chorus is the main highlight here.
Killer - Man, King's vocal harmony on that line is godly. Yes, that's the kind of vocal harmony that forces the listener to stay focused on the music and just simply be amazed.
The Poltergeist - This song just plain out rules you in everyway. And this song has the highlight of the entire album, which is during the lead break. What sounds like a squeaky door opening is actually the sound of the guitar, which fools you for a few seconds into thinking it's actually the sound of a squeaky door until it leads into the solo. Man, that is some killer stuff right there! Not something that occurs very often in music.
Dreams - Probably the weakest track on the album.
Moonlight - Another one of King's best song. His vocals on this one are constantly in falsetto form through out the entire song.
Six Feet Under - Yet, another catchy chorus that stays stuck on you.
The Spider's Lullaby - This is a very doom-ish tune in the vein of 70s Sabbath, mixed with eerie keyboard work and the insane laughs and vocals of the King. King really goes over the top in trying to sound insane with this one, what exactly does a spider sound like?? I don't know, but I do know that the guitar definatly sounds like one. You'll have to hear for yourself.
Eastmann's Cure - Another cool speed metal song , though a little more melodic and very soft in some places.
Room 17 - This song is much longer than it should be, over 8 minutes. I guess you can say it's pretty catchy at first but it's a little too long.
To The Morgue - Another doomy song,  a perfect album closer to a bone chilling tale....for those of you who are afraid of spiders.
This edition features a bonus disc with these demo versions: Moonlight, From the other side, The spider lullabye and Dreams. Remastered by Andy La Rocque !
www.metalblade.com
www.kingdiamondcoven.com
Review by Paul Caravasi

Cadaveric Poison- S/T (2016)

This is one of those records that you can listen to from beginning to end without any filler forced down your throat. The riffs are simply vicious and they are excessively developed within each track. The lyrics, while somewhat stock, really shine through in combination with the deep and throaty Paul Speckmann growls. The growls themselves are deliciously enjoyable, this album  stands out among many others that simply tried to imitate old sound bands. I really enjoy this CD for being one of the more aggressive Death/thrash Metal CD’s out there that never weakens or bends to any form of “commercial” idealism...yet still highly enjoyable. The production is dense.I say that this CD is GREAT. If you like the OLD school of classic death metal this is a CD you simply MUST own. Beers for these men!!! Now GO…BUY IT!!! On a closing note I also want to express my admiration of the demonically majestic cover art by Mark Riddick. Bravo Cadaveric Poison, Bravo!!
facebook.com/C.P.DeathMetal
metal-on-metal.com/bands/cadaveric-poison
Review by Paul Caravasi