Unburied - From beyond The Grave (2020)

The doom elements are already in place in some seriously good riffing on this release. As the sound quality became a little louder, the instruments began to raise themselves out of the shallow graves. The guitar sound have a thicker projection and in turn give the songs more of a "crunch" to its rabid bite. A slower and more doom-like sound mixed with raw death metal. The growled voice still there, the drumming chops begin to expand by attempting to match some of the different tempo changes and as a result there's more capability to include varied fills to the overall mixture. Matt fleshed out dormant abilities of himself from his last recording. And I have to say within less than a year's time he gave a decent size "nudge" forward. I recommend this recording for followers of a mixture of death, thrash and hints of doom where each of the respected genres are capable of working together as a whole.  I actually really like the filthy, atmosphere on this album.

unburiedbandmerch@gmail.com

Review by Paul Caravasi

Unburied - Primitive, Raw, Underground (2019)

The riffs on this release have a driving maniacal feeling to them and are played with insane rawness. I'm not bashing the common style of playing it's just that this is sort of a shock when compared to other extreme forms of music . These songs are punishing, vocals are interesting  as he grimly pukes out lyrical contents of this album . A demented personality of the characters portrayed on this. A cold decaying feeling of murder and morbidity. The drums punishing the listener with all out assault on the senses . Even the slower breaks from the insane pace of the songs are well done and have a morbid sound. Whether it's the sick-in-the-head escaped mental patient feeling given off by the vocals, or the morbid guitar is what the underground scene is all about. A perfect mixture of mental morbidity and raw brutality by Matt Pike. YOU NEED TO OWN THIS PERIOD !!!!!!!

unburiedbandmerch@gmail.com

Review by Paul Caravasi

Hellion - Rebel's Curse (2019)

It's a heavy explosion that will simply destroy you. It's relentlessly unstoppable, utterly dirty, and completely endless. This is Hellion from Colombia. This is an insanity of an album! Also a personal note, this stuff kicks a whole lot of ass.  Who cares how sloppy this can get at times, this is metal! The production could probably be noted as a bit thin and has an emphasis on the guitars over everything else, but in Hellion's case here such a mix is appropriate. Totally killer. It's pure raw thrash Metal never giving you room for a short breath in sight. You could say this is pretty comparable to what Whiplash did with Power And Pain, the entire point of this album is just to simply kick your ass repeatedly song after song. Rebel's Curse easily accomplishes this challenge if you're craving for a dose of nonstop brutal thrash. I'll simply end this review with this: if you want relentless violent music with an aggressive rough vocals, with crazy razor sharp fast guitars, and don't mind simplicity, get this Cd immediately. Also do yourself a favor and check out the bands other releases.  If you like your music fast fast fast - get your fix of Rebel's Curse NOW!

facebook.com/HellionMetalMedallo

awakeningrecords.cn

Review by Paul Caravasi

Amorphia - Arms To Death (2018)

Thrash metal is finally starting to emerge from different metal scenes worldwide where it was forged during the previous years. Amorphia from India already shocked me with this absolutely masterful “Arms To Death”  (an ultra-raw, lethal dose of thrash with some classic german sound references and, at the same time, a look toward the future) this is terrific and apocalyptic thrash metal. Rude, raw, primitive and flawless. Every riff flows into the next one in a totally flawless manner, beating the listener’s head at full up-tempo speed with some remarkable crescendos of power.  Nearly every song is built around an ascending climax which reaches its apex in the chorus, always conveying a quite threatening and mean feeling. The most brilliant example of this attack must be “Toxic Death”: aggressive, menacing riffs is furiously unleashed, developing into a really tasty sequence of wicked melodies which explodes into the devastating chorus. This Cd contains a lot of brutality and it's barbaric !!

facebook.com/Amorphiathrash

awakeningrecords.cn

Review by Paul Caravasi

Metralion - Quo vadis/A Mosh In Brazil (2019)

After three decades of silence, Awakening Records proudly presents a compilation of METRALION's two aggressive thrash metal gems "Quo Vadis" (1988) and "A Mosh in Brazil" (1989). In the late 80's the Brazilian Metal scene was simply the best in Southamerica. There were a fierce competition. Bands like Sepultura, Vulcano, Mx, Chakal and Sarcofago at the time were intense, but polishing their sound in every album. When Sepultura shook the world with “Beneath the Remains” not many were left floating around obviously. I'm glad that awakening records release these superb gems in one Cd.  The classic Metralion show here how raw thrash metal with full force should be played. it's simply amazing.  For fans of DORSAL ATLÂNTICA, TAURUS, MX, and ATTOMICA !!

www.awakeningrecords.cn

Review by Paul Caravasi

Nightbound - Ep (2019)

This is actually my first exposure to Nightbound from Paraguay. It seems I should have paid a bit closer attention to this band early on it. The production is very full and heavy in all the right spots, which, as a child of the 80's, i really like it.  The true power of Heavy could be heard with all of the ferocity that it's supposed to be heard. I do enjoy the sound captured here; the bass is mixed nicely in the songs, the guitars are crisp without overstating their presence, and the vocals are really good and melodic. A winner there, for sure. Arianna’s vocals are pretty awesome and they definitely have an old school vibe to them, it works quite well. This Ep sets to create a barrage of melodic/heavy tunes and just plain awesome. While there is certainly room for improvement, this band accomplishes that goal with stunning ease and is a fantastic start for a very talented and awesome band.

facebook.com/nightboundofficial

awakeningrecords.cn

Review by Paul Caravasi

Anthropic - Architects Of Aggression (2020)

So if you think there's bands fast or extreme, you have another thing coming. Buckle your seatbelts. This is a brilliant combination of brutality. It displays the band’s wide array of talents; they do it all here. Each member of the band is in top form on their respective instrument. Jim hits the drums about as fast as humanly possible, the bass player attack without mercy. very solid guitar, with monster riffs and awesome fills. The guitar sounds very, very heavy, and incredibly crushing. You WILL bang your head. Vocals are incredible, unbelievably dark, deep, which sounds like a grizzly bear barking at you indecipherably. Too much emotion, sounding absolutely demented. Unbelievable!! He captures all your anger and frustration and turns it into sonic bliss. The production is superb for Grindcore. It’s crisp, it’s clear, you can hear every instrument. Everything sounds great. You can immediately distinguish each instrument and what they’re trying to do. It’s beautiful. It’s definitely ONE OF the best Grindcore albums I’ve heard in a while. All in all, I consider this album absolutely mandatory for Grindfreaks, or anyone curious about what is/was Grindcore, and why it’s a genre worth checking out. Thank you, Anthropic, for showing me the light once again !!
facebook.com/Anthropicgrindcore
anthropic2.bandcamp.com
Review by Paul Caravasi