Perverticon/Wounds Of Divinity/Iron Bonehead Productions/2019 CD Review

  Perverticon  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  very  raw,  melodic  and  old  school  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "Wounds  Of  Divinity"  which  will  be  released  in  2019  by  Iron  Bonehead  Productions.

  A  very  dark  and  ritualistic  sound  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  while  the  riffs  also  add  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  along  with  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  using  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling.

  Vocals a re  mostly  grim  yet  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  while  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  some  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  as  well  as  some  clean  playing  also  being  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording,  one  track  also  adds  in  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  samples  and  the  music  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  Swedish  style  of  the  genre  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  growls, chants,  and  melodic guitar  leads  can  also  be  heard.

  Perverticon  plays  a  style  of  black  metal  that  is  very  raw  and  melodic  sounding  in  the  mid  90's  Swedish  tradition,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the lyrics  cover  Anti  Christianity,  Murder,  Sex  and  Extinction  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Perverticon  are  a  very  great  sounding  raw,  melodic  and  old  school  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Thirsting  For  Ruin"  "The  Cause  Of  Absolution"  "Breath  Of  Sulphur_Aura  Of  Flies"  and  "Holy  Gifts  From  Skinless  Hands".  8  out  of  10.

  

The Scars In Pneuma/The Path Of Seven Sorrows/Promethean Fire/Kolony Records/2018 CD Review

  The  Scars  In  Pneuma  are  a  band  from  Italy  that  plays  a  very  epic  and  melodic  form  of  black  metal and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "The  APth  Of  Seven  Sorrows"  which  will  be  released  in  2019  as  a  joint  effort  between  Promethean  Fire  and  Kolony  Records.

  A  very  dark  and  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  very  fast  and  raw  musical  direction  which  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.

  Vocals  are  mostly  deep  yet  grim  black  metal  screams  while  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  as  well  as  some  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  the  music  also  mixes  in  some  elements  of  death  metal  at  times,  one  song  also  introduces  female  vocals  and  acoustic  guitars  onto  the  recording  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  synths  can  also  be  heard.

  The  Scars  In  Pneuma  plays  a  style  of  black  metal  that  is  very  epic  and  melodic  sounding  while  also  adding  in  some  death  metal  elements,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dealing  with  your  own  demons,  life's  biggest  regrets,  the  passing  of  time  and  the  beloved  people  we  lost  themes.

  In  my  opinion  The  Scars  In  Pneuma  are  a  very  great  sounding  epic  and  melodic  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  :"Souls  Are  Burning"  'The  Secrets  That  We  Keep"  and  "The  Glorious  Empire  Of  Sand".  8  out  of  10.

Gravkade/Grav|aska/Avantgarde Music/2018 Full Length Review Review

  Gravkade  are  a  duo  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  mixture  of  depressive  black  metal  and  funeral  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  album  "Grav|aska"  which  was  released  by  Avantgarde  Music.

  Atmospheric  soundscapes  start  off  the  album  while  synths  are  a  very  huge  part  of  the  recording  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  which  also  introduces  high  pitched  yet  depressive  black  metal  screams  onto  the  recording  along  with  all  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Elements  of  funeral  doom  metal  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  and  tremolo  picking  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling  along  with  some  spoken  word  parts  also  being  used  briefly  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts and  as  the  album  progresses a   brief  use  of  rain  and  tribal  sounds  can  be  heard.

  Gravkade  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  depressive  black  and  funeral  doom  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of t heir  own,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  raw  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Swedish  and  cover  sorrow  and  depression  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Gravkade  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  depressive  black  and  funeral  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  duo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Dodpsalm"  and  "Sorgeakt".  8  out  of  10. 

  

10:13 Interview

1. For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the musical project?
- Certainly, this is a band that is hard to pin down in a defined genre, but it's soley focused on Dark/depressive song structures. It's geared towards people who feel happiness from music that is morose. It's a celebration of having no end filter. It's the ultimate self-help casket pamphlet. It's BLACK METAL, but it's got a deformed head growing off and taking over the entire body.

2. You have an album coming out during the beginning of 2019, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style you went for on the recording?
- I let my skills as a drummer take the lead when thinking about the energy source the listener will be looking for in extreme metal; my beginnings from Death Metal drumming are more apparent in my style than your average Black Metal band. From that point with every instrument I wanted to create a wall where every note and chord has been tediously filtered to have absolutely no uplifting progression. I needed to create something I could listen to that took me to this 'end of the world' feeling that many of my influences left off at.

3. The musical project is considered instrumental but there were a few black metal screams used every now and then, do you consider the vocals you use as being more of a musical instrument?
- I had a very biased opinion of doing any vocals from the start. Long story short: 20 years ago I was so overcome by Deinonychus' (Holland) cd releases, that it changed the way I heard every vocalist after that.  Nobody would ever be able to come off like the Mighty Marco Kehren so I didn't have ANY interest what-so-ever in going backwards. But I did need to add that element of the listener being pulled down through a vortex into hell, so I pulled the mic out for a second. The instuments always serve to take the lead. I notice when drifting off to instrumental music, I am able to go deeper in a trance because the vocals are not pulling me back to reality. I'm trying to escape the thought of people, not be reminded of them.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name '10:13'? 
- It's the 1's and 0's that attracted me. After years of hearing repeat band names I could hardly remember, I felt numbers were a little more appealling to the tone I'm trying to set here. Searching 10:13 will come up with any number of meanings: disturbing codes.....a day that is of interest to me though is October 13th (every 6 years a Friday) a birthday. I liked how Prog dudes would just name the whole band after their legal name. There was never any gimmicks or fluff with them. It was my version of doing that aswell.

5. Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the album? 
- I was surprised I had any drawing ability in me beyond a bad stick figure. I took a beginning drawing class 5 years ago and an assignment was the cattle skull I altered and used on the back of the cd. In the middle of this 1st charcoal drawing, I came up with a concept I knew had emotion and truth. So the gas mask on the animal is a vision of our planet's legacy. This will be far after mankind is gone, but I do believe it's a little to late with peoples attitudes about abundantly having kids. The lands will be to toxic for any life. I trace this back to the discovery of iron/metals and the killing effects mankind quickly adopted with them. Through swords, bullets, and now nanotechology it's so interesting to see how reckless we are.  I'm not saying any of this is right or wrong....just simply observing it all.  The front cover drawing I did to represents the future/eerily looks more like the present.

6. In what part of the United States is the musical project based at?
-Lovely Southern California.

7. Most of the music on the album was recorded solo, would you be open to expanding into a full line up and doing live shows?
- I've often thought that vision through but unfortunately I would need 7 other members to match the layering in my songs. If somehow people came knocking; I'm convinced I'm too far gone at this point to open 10:13's writing to anyone beyond exclusive guest appearances (which I greatly enjoy.)  I do have an angle for any small shows I'll be assembling; That being next to no one-man BM bands I know of play live drums. And isn't that why every man, woman, and child wakes up in the morning for: drummers.

8. You also had a few guests on the recording, can you tell us a little bit more about who they are and there contributions?
- Certainly. I had my Dad on the album playing some acoustic chords that would've taken me ages to never of been able to play it. Plus he set me off from birth into never accepting mediocre music so it felt right.
  Next I had gotten Derek Sherinian (ex-Dream Theater, Planet X), to help out on two tracks. One of them being the final track off the album which he pretty much wrote 70% of the song!
   My drum engineer/recording professor Dennis Anderson then laid down a bass solo on the middle of the album I am still in shock of some years later. 
   Concluding the guest appearances is my bud Mario Romero laying down some guitar solos on spots I'd felt needed some flair. He did a brief few shows as fill-in drummer for Letum Ascensus and will be showcased on future 10:13 recordings along with any other musician's I admire.

9. Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
- After brief thought into the subject I decided to keep it all under my control under the name UncleBaby Records. I did everything from scratch as most bands do nowadays. I'd already paid for the recording time so I really didn't see what a label could offer me except for unsolicited advice at this point. I never wanted to bear the sins or 'labels' other bands may have gotten from being affiliated with any sector of the music business. I needed to set the tone for the label I chose.

10. On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black metal?
- I guess I'm still waiting to see the reaction beyond America. Local reaction has been optimistic and some of the comments are exactly what I intended to go for. Im just glad that I wasn't the only one that felt there had been a hole left in the genre. And plus the challenge from trying to pull a BM crowd was always attractive to me. If you put your average Joe on stage with an instrument in front of an expectant/hardend metal crowd; chances are they'd wet themselves. But many of are us are like : "Sure, can I light some fire on-stage?".

11. Are you also involved with any other bands or musical projects?
- At the moment I've kept all my effort focused within this band. In the 90's I played some cool headlining shows with many of the big bands back then at the Corona Showcase Theater in California. I kept working at drums since then, but at 38 this is my musical recording debut. I had some near misses far in the past of recording with some Relapse Rec. bands, but honestly looking back I'm relieved nothing ever happened until this point. I'm terribly critical of my every move and knowing any of those premature recordings were out there would've nagged at the back of my mind. Though being a drummer since '93 and NOT having any recordings of myself did come with it's share of mental distress.

12. Where do you see yourself heading in the future musically? 
-Now that I have an idea what it takes to record myself, I'd say what I come up with from here on out should be greatly beyond what I've done so far regarding darkness and production. This debut is 'me just waking up'. "Making a dry turkey sandwich", you could say. I feel I'm nowhere near my peak at drums which is promising. I plan to start arranging/pre-recording my already written second album a month after this debut is released. Some songs can take months as a whole. And I'll be rehearsing for live shows and making those videos available on youtube.

13. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
- lm pretty split between Progressive Rock and extreme metal so they've all had an influence on me: Nidingr, Ved Buens Ende/Virus, Kvist, Planet X, Phillip Glass,
Grifteskymfning, Xasthur, Deinonychus, Camper Van Beethoven, Yattering, Virgil Donati Band, Yellow Eyes, Evilfeast, Gentle Giant, Morbid Angel, Derek Sherinian, Enoid/Borgne, Darkspace, Abigor, Limbonic Art, Incantation, Tony MacAlpine are all worth a mention.

14. What are some of your non musical interests?
- Before music became a thing with me I was into anything remote controlled. I might get back into that when I'm an old man. Also I am hypnotized and smitten with anything regarding cats. They're always on my mind and I'm constantly thinking of ways to become closer with them. They have never let me down or ever disappoint me. I believe they're the best companion on the planet. The way they can look at you is hilarious! They're just so perfect and loving.

15. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts? 
- I'm a firm believer in holding a band's physical album in your hands. Regarding sound quality, it's a no brainer for anyone with respect for music. Before the internet lifted the veil, there was true mystery behind the lives of the artist. The cd of their's you were holding was the only clue for you to piece together the meaning behind these great songs of theirs. I hope enough of this internet exposure has proven to many to be a bad thing and bands and fans seek to go underground a bit more. Too much of one thing can be awful and if kids went and purchased any cd it would give them time to marinate in all that it has to offer. I do recognize the ease of access and avenues the web has offered, but it's obvious we sold part of our soul to gain those few perks...

Thank you for the interview.   -Neil Carter
http://1013.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/1013neilcarter/

Asmodee/Aequilanx/Battlesk'rs Productions/2018 Demo Re-Issue Review

  Asmodee  where  a  band  from  France  that  played    very  raw  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  1997  demo  "Aequilanx"  which  will  be  re-issued  on  December, 14, 2018  by  Battlesk'rs  Productions.

  Blast  beats  start  off  the  demo  before  adding  in  grim  yet  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  while  the  riffs  also  add  in  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  and  demonic  growls  are  also  used  briefly.

  Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow.  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  synths  can  also  be  heard  briefly  along  with  the  music  bringing  out  the  raw  style  that  was  very  common  during  that  era  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to them  as  well  as the  guitar  leads  also  keeping  the  raw  and  chaotic  style.

  Asmodee  played  a  style  of  black  metal  that  was  very  raw  and  aggressive  for  the  time  it  was  released  and  still  holds  up in  the  modern  era,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  raw  while  the  lyrics  cover  Occultism  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Asmodee  where  a  very  great  sounding  raw  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  demo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Great  Final  Justice"  and  "Cain's  Black  Spells".  8  out  of  10.

 

    

Dictator/Dysangelist/Aesthetic Death/2019 CD Re-Issue Review

  Dictator  are  a  solo  project  from  Cyprus  that  plays  a  mixture  of  depressive  black,  funeral  doom  metal  and  dark  ambient  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  2008  album  "Dysangelist"  which  will  be  re-issued  in  2019  by  Aesthetic  Death.

  Dark  ambient  style  synths  and  soundscapes  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  grim  sounding  whispers  a  few  seconds  later  while  all  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  the  vocals  being  mostly  depressive  black  metal  screams  and  the  slower  riffs  are  very  heavily  rooted  in  funeral  doom  metal.

  The  synths  also  bring  in  a  variety  of  many  different  sounding  keys  while  all  of  the  drum  beats  are  programmed  along  with  the  riffs  also  bringing  in  a  great  amount  of  dark  and  depressive  sounding  melodies  as  well  as  the  solos  and  leads  also  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style,  all  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  and  clean  vocals  can  also  be  heard  and  all  of  the  music  sticks  to  a  slower  direction.

  Dictaor  plays  a  musical style  that takes  depressive  black,  funeral  doom  metal  and  dark  ambient  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  his  own,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  while  the  lyrics  cover  death,  darkness,  anti  religion,  suicide  and  occultism  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Dictator  is  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  depressive  black,  funeral  doom  metal  and  dark  ambient  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  solo  project.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Dysangelist"  and  "Monolithos".  8  out  of  10. 

Shaytan/Ancient Shadows/2017 EP Review

  Shaytan  are  a  band  from  Brazil  that  plays  a  very  satanic  and  occult  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2017  ep  "Ancient  Shadows".

  Acoustic  guitar  playing  starts  off  the  ep  before  going  into  a  very  fast  and  raw  musical  direction  which  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  along  with  the  music  also  being  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  style.

  Deep  growls  can  also  be  heard  at  times  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  the  songs  also  adding  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  small  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  and  on  the  closing  track  guitar  leads  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  Shaytan  plays  a  style  of  satanic  occult  black  metal  that  is  very  raw,  fast,  aggressive  and  traditional  sounding,  the  production  sounds  very  dark  and  raw  while  the  lyrics  cover  Satanism  and  Sumerian/Assyrian/Babylonian  Mythology  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Shaytan  are  a  very  great  sounding  satanic  occult  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Lords  Of  Hell" and  "Dark  Mistress  Of  Death".  8/5  out  of  10.