Thrall – Vermin To The Earth
Vermin to the Earth is a bleak, vicious, and razor-sharp swipe at the gut. No warning bites here, Thrall make it clear they will not rest until they see/bring forth complete annihilation.
Moribund
Postcards from Natalie Zed, Set #8
Hellbound readers, you know Natalie Zed, right? Natalie was our big grand prize winner way back in January, taking home more than 50 CDs + and shortly after she received her huge box ‘o CDs, Ms. Zed asked us over at Hellbound HQ if we’d be interested in running reviews of her winnings if she did postcard sized reviews of the albums. How could we say no?
She’s reviewed all the original CDs and is now reviewing newer things that have made their way to her. Here is part eight of her ongoing series which we like to call “Postcards With Natalie Zed”.
Blood Cult – We Are the Cult of the Plains
I hope that more people will find the time to check out We Are the Cult of the Plains, because after repeated listening, it’s totally grown on me – a fascinating, schizophrenic, Syd Barrett take on black metal.
KEVI METAL’S RIMSHOTS v.2 #3
The music world is filled with similar smoke and mirrors acts. We’re told over and over and over again that so-and-so’s new album is the one that’ll re-define the genre. How many times have you heard in the last couple years that this-and-that’s “stunning” comeback album is “highly anticipated” and their best yet? Better than Bonded by Blood? Not bloody likely! The lies haven’t stop piling up since the music industry released its ad campaign for Elvis’ second record and this month’s Rimshots lifts the veil, cuts through the crap and saves you some money and/or hard drive space.
Nazxul: Iconoclast
Despite Nazxul’s more arid southern hemisphere imagery, Iconoclast has a traditional but ferocious sound that is anything but dry.
Merrimack: Gray Rigorism
Grey Rigorism is the third full-length album from French black metallers Merrimack. The record starts out strong, but over the course of the hour-long running time things become somewhat inconsistent at points.
Marduk/Nachtmystium @ Annex Wreckroom, Toronto, ON, November 22, 2009
Late November seems as good a time as any to take in a performance by Swedish metal veterans Marduk. A concert centered around a black metal band known for its own distinct take on imagery and songs centering on everything from war machines to religious blasphemy to paganism seems strangely appropriate for a grey month squashed between the twin commercial juggernauts that are Halloween and Christmas.
Concert review by Jonathan Smith
Canis Dirus: A Somber Wind from a Distant Shore
Overall, there is stuff to appreciate on A Somber Wind from a Distant Shore, but one hopes that Canis Dirus will have lots of time to surprise us with their growth in the coming and changing seasons.
Old Wainds: Death Nord Kult
Apparently it’s pretty cold in Murmansk. Less chilly is Death Nord Kult, the latest release from Old Wainds. They hail from northern Russia, and thus it’s not overly surprising that their brand of black metal is all about darkness, the arctic, and geographical isolation.
Ruins: Cauldron
Originally released in 2008 in their homeland, Australian-based Ruins’ Cauldron is a solid cut of minimalist black metal that comes off as being fairly accessible.