Hirax – El Rostro De La Muerte
A solid offering that never slips below expectations, El Rostro De La Muerte admirably strives to create some elbow room between Exodus’ Pleasures Of The Flesh and Testament’s The New Order.
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Airbourne – No Guts, No Glory
It has been a very long time since music like this sounded so energetic; on No Guts, No Glory, Airbourne rock out like true believers and they have the chops to back up their ambition.
Kreator, Voivod, Nachtmystium, Evile @ Opera House, Toronto, ON, March 9, 2010
KREATOR, of course, positively destroyed The Opera House. “Hordes of Chaos” raised the energy level in the room to near-riot level early on, and “Enemy of God” and “Extreme Aggression” kept it there. Whatever chilliness I’d initially felt evaporated almost immediately, and there was rarely a moment when my fist wasn’t in the air and my neck muscles weren’t burning.
Natalie Zed reviews the recent Toronto stop of the Kreator, Voivod, Nachtmystium tour, which happened Tuesday night at the Opera House.
Joe Thrasher – Metal Forces
The end result is a raw, almost desperate affair brimming with stellar riffs, engaging caterwauls and an adrenaline-pumping pace virtually absent since thrash’s formative years.
Imperium Dekadenz – Procella Vadens
While it’s questionable whether the band haven’t left behind one set of stereotypes only to embrace another, what isn’t questionable is that Imperium Dekadenz have produced an awesome album that is one of the best that the black metal genre has to offer so far this year.
Charred Walls Of The Damned – s/t
All in all, Charred Walls… is a solid piece of all-out metal from a seasoned group of players who fit really, really well together.
Megadeth: Rust in Peace 20th Anniversary Tour w/ Testament and Exodus, Prairieland Park, Saskatoon, SK, March 8, 2010
If there was a concert to bring out the old school headbangers in full force, some with their kids in tow, it was this one. Not only was Megadeth bringing along fellow Bay Area thrash legends Testament and Exodus along for their spring tour of North America, but Dave Mustaine and crew were set to perform the classic Rust in Peace album in celebration of its 20th anniversary, while Testament had promised to play their great 1987 debut The Legacy in its entirety.
Adrien Begrand reviews the recent Saskatoon stop of the current Megadeth, Testament and Exodus tour.
Fuck the Facts – Unnamed EP
The EP’s six tracks showcase Fuck the Facts’s brutal approach, incorporating a spectrum of everything grinding, deadly, and black. The songs are shockingly tight, and surprising at every turn.
Arsis – Starve for the Devil
The very recently released Arsis album, Starve for the Devil manages to fast and provide guitar parts that are memorable. The vocals are good and growley sounding but listening closely the words are almost understandable.
Six Feet Under – Graveyard Classics III
The concept of the covers album is a risky one. Nothing wrong with slapping one on as a B-side or extra track. But to propose a whole album of covers often begs the question, “What? Have they run out of their own material already?” When you decide to make the cover album an ongoing series, you run the risk of self-parody; Six Feet Under are getting dangerously close to that point with Graveyard Classics III.