PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS - "CHOOSING MENTAL ILLNESS AS A VIRTUE" (2018)

PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS - "CHOOSING MENTAL ILLNESS AS A VIRTUE"
(Running time: 46:28 minutes; 10 songs)
("Season of Mist" & "Housecore Records"; 2018; CD):

Hey guys, yes, again after too many days I am finally back @ work again up here. Guys, in all honesty, I am damn sorry but currently I just simply don't get it done to find or make the time to do finally some more new stuff up here again with still all the time far too much hectic and stress in the 'real life departments' right now and also the two already last month announced bigger posts are still overdue, I know, but trust me when I say that I'm still 'at it' and I hope to bring them finally up as soon as possible and for right now untill then and so far I will be happy enough when I finally bring this new post up and online still today respectively tonight, yes, and so here we finally go again: Today respectively tonight you will get my record-review on the new full-length-album of/by PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS titled "CHOOSING MENTAL ILLNESS AS A VIRTUE", released (if I now remember it correct) pretty much exactly two months ago sort of in/at the middle of February 2018 via "SEASON OF MIST" and "HOUSECORE RECORDS" and being wrapped-up in an incredible gorgeous digi-artwork. I was and still am a big, a huge fan of the debut "WALK THROUGH EXITS ONLY" of/by PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS (released back then five years ago in 2013) and so I was really curious to get my hands on the then finally released successor release and then... and then I was pretty much confused, at least a bit, because while all the Sludge Core influences and the pissed off extreme Hardcore notes where already on the debut very prominent all this harsh and devastating, bloody reigning and rotten Death Metal paired with some ice cold slaying Black Metal marks are pretty much completly (more or less) new here on "CHOOSING MENATL ILLNESS AS A VIRTUE", yes, and so (again like in the case of the above mentioned debut back then) I needed some time and it took me some listens to really get 'this all here' and before I really started to discover this pretty blocky and demanding, harsh and challenging but or and above all incredibe brutal, extreme, nicely clichèe-free, and rousing album in all its sick and twisted, sinister shining glory. PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS created with "CHOOSING MENATL ILLNESS AS A VIRTUE" a really sick'n'twisted, distorted'n'distorting and evil droning as well as crusty shredding bastard out of nihilistic'n'apocalyptic Sludge Core, absolutely demolishing and extreme and metallic as well as by crusty'n'noisy Punk fueled Hardcore, 'devastatingly distorted and distorting' Death Metal, and some few hatefilled and ice cold slaying really bitter and harsh Black Metal, all done very, very extreme as well as truly damn independently/self-conatined and maybe best loosely to be located somewhere between EYE HATE GOD on the one side, ARSON ANTHEM and some RINGWORM on the other side, all wrapped up by schizophrenic GORGUTS styled Death Metal (not on that over absolutely every top let us say 'proggy' level but in that insane and harshly extreme tradition), all cultivated by some few icy (early) DARK THRONE marks and all made round by some SUPERJOINT RITUAL impressions, yes, somewhere in between all this devastating noise you will find PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS cooking their very own sort'n'taste of crusty and thick dark soup. The songs carry a lot of emotional weight and are 'highliest' intense and interwoven through'n'through by a very sinister and psychotic atmosphere that really breathes life into the harsh delivered, blocky arranged and demanding composed, challenging songs that offer a lot of strong ideas, fresh surprises, and really demanding twists'n'turns all along the way. Driven forward by the brutal and charismatic lead vocals (brutal grunts and harsh shouts go hand in hand and some sick screms round it all up) and the multi-facetted but all the time incredible heavy and aggressive slaying'n'shredding guitars and all is then backed up beefy and bulky by the full power bass work and the massively smashing and stunning drumming. Strong and outspoken lyrics, an already mentioned fantastic artwork, and a heavy and dirty production-sound then round it all finally up. Sadly some songs just loose a bit of their focus and get lost on their way somewhere in their own noisy droning and über-aggressive 'destructiveness' and you really should prepare yourself to invest your time and yourself quite a bit into this highly extreme and insane, sick and psychotic harsh and also really damn strong album, yes, but then you definitely find yourself a really convincing brutal and extreme manifest of 'self-catharsis' and in all honesty I can only recommend this highly authentic and by all means just damn massive one here to you, period. So, yes, go out and get if you should still don't call it your own. And, yes, it's really, really good that Philip H. Anselmo is finally back again.

(9 of 10 points)

http://philanselmo.com/theillegals/ (-the link to the homepage of the band)

PHILIP H. ANSELMO - "THE IGNORANT POINT" (2018, "CHOOSING MENATL ILLNESS AS A VIRTUE")

THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER - "NIGHTBRINGERS" (2017)

THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER - "NIGHTBRINGERS"
(Running time: 49:18 minutes; 14 songs)
("Metal Blade Records"; 2017; CD):

Hey guys, okay, time to give you some new stuff to read up here again and so here now comes the next dose for you which means the next record-review by me for you and this time it will be all about the (brand)new THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER full-length-album "NIGHTBRINGERS" released at the 6th of october of this very year of 2017 via the mighty "METAL BLADE RECORDS" label. THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER were always pretty to very much under my radar-screen because somehow they never really (sort of...) 'spoke to me' so far and so their newest release "NIGHTBRINGERS", which is their 'all-in-all' already 8th studio-full-length-album, is my real first 'meeting' with them. I have the limited edition that comes in an absoultely amazing artwork and that features five bonus tracks of which two are live recordings of (I would guess...) older songs of/by/from them ("ABYSMAL" and "WHEN THE LAST GRAVE HAS EMPTIED") and two cover versions, one of AT THE GATES' "THE SWARM" and one of CARCASS' "THIS MORTAL COIL" and these two cover-tunes point pretty much in the right direction of what THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER give us music-wise: Melodic Death Metal, hyper-aggressive and 'technically' truly high-skilled, and with a modern touch to it all that will surely make them more than only a little bit like-able for all you Metalcore and Deathcore fans outta there. (Btw, the 'normal' version crosses the finishing line in about 33 minutes or so.) This never was and still isn't that much 'my thing' and so... hm... so where or how to start... maybe here and so: Like already said this is truly and through and through hyper-aggressive and filled on and on with a forceful guitar work that delivers so damn sharp cutting, precise slaying, and mercylessly slashing, damn heavy guitar riffing and such headcracking rhythm work that you mostly instantly start to bang your head, yes, and where the guitars really shine is when it comes to the delivered highly melodic leads and the absoultely amazing solos, oh hell yeahr, and there's no need of any further mentioning of how strong and also of how heavily marking the guitars are for the songs and the music of THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER. Pretty much the same (when it comes to being heavily marking for the songs of the music of THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER) is to say when we talk about the high pitched, hysterical, diabolical, and just also hyper-aggressive screamed lead vocals that sometimes change to deep and dark guttural grunts but mostly settle in the mentioned territory of the very harsh delivered screams and that are by any means also pure aggression set to music and that deliver an nearly if not sheer incredible amount of lyrics in/with/through the all-in-all anyhow anyway not that long songs; and that also mark the songs heavily. All is then backed up by a very tight and precise and stunningly heavy rhythm section. The songwriting is also pretty to very strong and definitely far above average and delivers truckloads of energetic rhythm work, dynamic pace changings, and a pretty intense atmosphere pretty much all the time; and that the guys in/of THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER are really high skilled musicians should need no further explanation here and now anyhow anyway. All in all THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER's "NIGHTBRINGERS" I would locate on a pretty self-contained position somewhere between AT THE GATES (think of their larger than life masterpiece "SLAUGHTER OF THE SOUL"), CARCASS (think of their groundbreaking "HEARTWORK" masterpiece), some modern Metalcore and Deathcore somewhere between acts like HEAVEN SHALL BURN and ABHORRENT DECIMATION, as well as some up-to-date pseudo Death Metal like ARCH ENEMY, yes, I think somewhere between this bands and styles and influences you should find THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER and their "NIGHTBRINGERS" and you should find them pretty quick (and also surely pretty strong). The only problem that I have with this album or maybe sort of with this band and album and that certain style of music, hm, I miss a special flavour and really exciting moments because at the end it is all pretty equal to one another (song- and also band-wise in general) and that's also here the case; but maybe that's just me and it's anyhow surely a matter of personal preferences but just that you know mine and don't wonder why my final rating on it is or will be how it is/will be. But this a more general problem I have with this Modern Melodic Death Metal'n'Metalcore'n'Deathcore stuff and this out of the way a particular problem with "NIGHTBRINGERS" is definitely that the songs are too short and offer in that short space'n'time simply (but definitely) far too much lyrics so that the songs are far too damn often simply too 'overloaded' and the music itself is put too often in the background and sort of 'sinks down under/beneath the words' and also so-this-way it turns out to be that the songs simply  again'n'again are a overly hectic and stressful affair (and not the good way of being 'hectic'n'stressy' which means demanding and challenging... but instead of this from time to time quite annoying)... damn it, I mean: longer songs or less words - one of it would have been the golden way, definitely. Also I would wish, like already mentioned a few passages above, that the songs as single songs would have a stronger own identity because (also, at least if you ask me, due to being 'overflooded by the lyrics') for my personal taste the songs sound too often too equal... but maybe that's just and nothing but a matter of my personal taste, who knows. But anyhow, more or less, despite all this THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER's "NIGHTBRINGERS" definitely is still a good to damn good album and if you are into the named style(s) of music and/or the named bands then you should definitely risk an ear and give it a fair try. A big bunch of sick, sinister, and pretty 'evil' lyrics, a (like already mentioned) absoultely beautiful artwork, and a heavy bombing (but maybe a little bit too 'trigger-happy') production sound finally round it all up. So, yes, I think now you know all what there's from my point of view to know about the "NIGHTBRINGERS" of/by THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, yes, and so why not give it a good round and a fair try and this best right now.

(7,5 of 10 points)

http://www.tbdmofficial.com/ (-the link to the homepage of the band)

THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER - "NIGHTBRINGERS" (2017, "NIGHTBRINGERS")

MORBID ANGEL - "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" (2017)

MORBID ANGEL - "KINGDOMS DISDAINED"
(Running time: 47:42 minutes; 11 songs)
("Silver Lining Music"; 2017; CD):

Damn it, too much days passed by without allowing me to do some new stuff up here finally again, fuck, but so far currently I still haven't given up (...completly...) on my plan of delivering you all the record-reviews on 2017 releases up here for you before christmas... no, not yet given up (at least not completly)... but I'm preparing myself for the 'happening' that it maybe could take me longer... but at least I'll try everything to get it all done latest before the change of the years 2017-2018... and so without any further talking straight back finally into the action again, yes, and so now finally here comes my newest post for you which means my newest record-review for you, yes, and this time it's on the brandnew MORBID ANGEL full-length-album "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" that's released still very recently this very year of 2017 via (the to me so far sort of totally unknown) "SILVER LINING MUSIC" label. So, yes, MORBID ANGEL... the (so it seems to me) highly controversial precursor release never 'came to my ears' and so MORBID ANGEL sort of always were and still are absolute Death Metal kings to/for me... okay, even "HERETIC" never sort of speaked to me, hm, but maybe that's also just me and not 'something of general concern', who knows... aynway... you maybe get already sort of a good impression of how excited I was when I finally got to listen to MORBID ANGEL's "KINGDOMS DISDAINED", yes, and now to what used to hit me and what will hit you: Metal of Death!!! Steve Tucker is back in the camp of the morbid angels and Trey Azagthoth also recruited with Scotty Fuller a new drummer and this bestial three piece created "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" and for all what I got so far this seems to be a pretty often more or less heavily discussed album. A lot seem to see and judge MORBID ANGEL's "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" pretty to partly even very critical, and not only the so it seems anyhow only few fanboys of the precursor album (and if they are anyway more than only a few then they seem to be not very vocal at all) do so... to be honest I don't really get what this whole bitching is all about... MORBID ANGEL are around since freaking fucking decades and they very much established what extreme Death Metal is all about and set the standards again and again so when I now read that they would not 'newly-invent-the-wheel' (while at the same time- at best- still being critizes for the more experimental songs on the precursor release...) I can only wonder and not at least because from my point of view MORBID ANGEL created with "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" a very fresh and mostly from start-to-finish very rousing, alive-lively, and grapping album with a good to big bunch of really strong to excellent new songs, yes, and this is high skilled headcracking and bonesmashing, harsh and brutal and yet incredible technical and massively diverse blasphemous Death Metal on a very high skilled level of quality and that's packed up full with exciting and grapping moments and elements that enrich it all massively and all is cultivated with one of the very best and most unique guitar work ever outta there, yes, and all is surely very demanding and no easy-listening-affair but that were MORBID ANGEL never and Death Metal  in general should never be this. Surely not all songs are gold or even platinum and some few more fillers sort of songs are (surely sadly enough) to be found on "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" and the sort of the very 'muddy' and strangely powerless production sound comes close to being a farce but at the end of the day "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" is damn strong, fresh delivered extreme Death Metal from the get-go on. Guttural and very harsh grunted vokillz, an amazing rhythm section (and especially the drums shine phenomenal bright and wide above all), and all is massively marked and cultivated by the fantastic and brilliant, breath-taking and mindblowing guitar work, yes, it's all here; and all is mostly melted together by a very strong songwriting and the songs are marked by a very sinister and nihilstic, a through-and-through apocalyotic and very intense atmosphere that's very tight and that's nearly perfectly interwoven into the songs and the album, yes, and allow yourself to work yourself deep and deeper into MORBID ANGEL's "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" or respectively give it the good and fair chance to grow on you, yes, because this it will surely do. There's a mssive and highly energetic dynamic-work of/to the songs that's only waiting to be discovered by you, with massively high and surely very often 'hyper-blasting' high speed and high'n'fast pace of the songs, yes, and yet there are so incredible much varying passages and elements 'woven-into' the songs with a great and often more than great harmonies/disharmonies-work and still we find in all the 'at first sight' mostly up- to high- and blastspeed songs absolutely great changes of the rhythms and also the pace and especially one devastating assault armada of riffs on such a high skilled, massively and brutal, stunning and yet diverse level of arrangements and composition that for the very most parts MORBID ANGEL's "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" simply will leave your mouth wide open wondering what currently invades your head and your heart and your soul through your ears from out of your stereo-speakers, yes, and it only got or gets better all the time when you realize again and again how technically skilled and 'proggy' demanding the songs truly and really are and yet still they flow'n'float so perfectly gentle together that there are no songwriting holes or any blank holes in the songs, yes, the songs work on and on as songs and are no egotrippin' pseudo-'proggy' farce. Fresh and grapping song arrangements and a very to incredible forceful compositorial work that offers strong ideas, a very unique own identity, and sheer force are the key-elements to let "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" conquer you, hell yeahr, carried out by MORBID ANGEL via and through-out a phenomenal unique and highest skilled guitar work that totally will leave no bone unsmashed such stunningly heavy and massively brutal is it and yet it's so full of truly symphonic sinister, sick, apocalyptic, and just nihilistic leads and absoultely mind-opening solos, and also the guitars add a lot of the already somewhere above mentioned very intense atmosphere, yes, an evil buzzing and a lot of meat to the backbone of "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" adding heavy bass playing, incredible highest skilled drumming that totally stets the standards new in the department of technial and extreme musick, and not at least via and through-out the very charismatic very brutal vokillz that give the songs finally and really their dark shining crown. My personal favorites are the everything done smashing opening duo tracks "PILES OF LITTLE ARMS" and "D.E.A.D.", the sheer larger-than-life fantastic "GARDEN OF DISDAIN" that holds its very own ground with ist outstanding strong rhythm work and 'staccato-grooves' (in that particular way a totally unique MORBID ANGEL trademark) even in comparison with the still absolutely outstanding "DOMINATION" era of MORBID ANGEL, the totally evil and atomizing massive wall of sound that simply is "ARCHITECT AND ICONOCLAST", the overwhelming and  very technical and (in all positive meaning) demanding "THE PILLARS CRUMBLING" with its very 'proggy' rhythimc structures, the catchy and just sort of hymnal "FOR NO MASTERS" (definitely the über-hit here of and on MORBID ANGEL's "KINGDOMS DISDAINED", yes, definitely), the sinister grinning and unstoppabel forward to war marching "DECLARING NEW LAW (SECRET HELL)", and also the final track "THE FALL OF IDOLS" that is simply nothing but pure hate set to musick and this in an overwhelming way. If only the (in my book) sort of much too (especially for a band like MORBID ANGEL) lame and stale stereotypical Death Metal tune "PARADIGMS WARPED" (it offers of course some great guitar solo work and some nice very 'doomy' marks but is just a too mid paced stereotypical boring Death Metal roll-on-track with no real own identity) and the sort of incredible shocking uninspired and to me sort of a HATE ETERNAL ripp-off seeming'n'sounding "FROM THE HAND OF KINGS" with its too boring superficial blasting mostly 'all the time' wouldn't be, two really, really weak songs especially for a band like MORBID ANGEL, than my final rating would be even better/higher than it already is anyhow. The only 'just' solid mid placed song on MORBID ANGEL's "KINGDOMS DISDAINED" (so far) is "THE RIGHTEOUS VOICE" and beside this track we only get true killer tunes and two (in my book) absoultely and sort of shocking crappy songs that especially a band like MORBID ANGEL should be able to do far better even while half-a-sleep... but anyhow this one here is a damn strong, a very strong album for that other bands would sell their soul(s) to the almighty Gods of Rock & Roll to get it done in that way only once in a lifetime. Thoughtful and thought-provoking, very strong lyrics and a first class 'diabolical' artwork then round it all up. A truly damn good album by one of the still very, very best (Death Metal) bands outta there and I can only recommend it to you if you are into Death Metal or extreme musick in general, yes, and so go out and get, period.
(8,5 of 10 points)
www.morbidangel.com/ (- the link to the homepage of the band)

MORBID ANGEL - "FOR NO MASTERS" (2017, "KINGDOMS DISDAINED")

IMMOLATION - "ATONEMENT" (2017)

IMMOLATION - "ATONEMENT"
(Running time: 48:53 minutes; 12 songs)
("Nuclear Blast Records"; 2017; CD):

Hey guys, yes, it's me again and I'm back @ work right up here - you may could say: all for you - and so without any long introducing smalltalk we rather jump on straight into the action and here and now this or the action is all about the current new 2017 full length album release by/of no one else than the just pure and simply  larger than life grandmasters of Blasphemous Death Metal from the U.S.A. and I am talking about and I am praising and hailing no one else than the almighty IMMOLATION, the legends from New York City, and their newest full length album release that carries the title of "ATONEMENT" and it's their tenth studio full length album in their 31 years or so spanning career (1986 - 2017) and it was released at the 24th of February of this very year of 2017 via the german based "NUCLEAR BLAST RECORDS" label, yes, and here and now I finally get it done to do my review up here for you, yes, and so now here we go... and, just btw, IMMOLATION's "HERE IN AFTER" from 1996 (I guess) is still to and @ this very day one of my top ten all time favorite Death Metal albums ever; but now back to the topic, yes, IMMOLATION's 2017 "ATONEMENT", yes, and so now finally (again) here we go: "ATONEMENT" is one absolutely amazing and awesome, sheer unbelievable high skilled piece of satanic and blaspehmic, sinister and brutal Death Metal that's incredible intense and through and through interwoven with sheer palpable close very deep'n'dark atmosphere and overwhelming huge and massive and all the time very alive-lively emotions, yes, this album is on all levels nothing but the absolutely sheer and pure and full force and might set to musick, hell yeahr, and that this one here is also one of the very most brutal and also technically highest skilled releases (of 2017) I only state here for the record, yes. IMMOLATION's "ATONEMENT" then really comes to life thanks to the fantastic songwriting that's very, very massive and intense and yet very diverse and rich on variations and truckloads of surprising and so not expected moments and that above all is also so damn fuckin' atmospheric and full of a high emotional scale/'scaleing', yes, and that also offers a wide variety of grapping song arrangements and exciting as well as rousing and no prisoners taking rhythm and riff compositions, large pace variations from in sort of  'this all and everything in-between' annihilating blasts to crypt-like Doom parts and 'slammy' mosh monsters, a very lot of massively soul- and playful finishes/'cultivations' to each of the songs, and a very strong and sinister and evil glooming and yet bright shining 'play' with dissonances that anyhow flow smooth (as 'smooth' as Death Metal can be ;-) - if you get what I mean ............) all together, yes, and this so incredible rich songwriting is done and delivered in such a phenomenal highest skilled musical way that it will absolutely take and conquer you by storm and in a very, nah, in an absolutely and totally supreme way, style, and manner, yes, this is definitely absolutely pure platinum and this on all fronts, period. All is packed up to the extreme max full with diverse smashing and yet really sort of symphonic guitars that are delivering the very best of the goods no matter if we look at the briliant rhythmic work or the full force fantastic riffing on the one side or the outshining sinister and dark 'lead' work with its glorious play with disharmonies/harmonies, dissonances and melody lines on the other side, totally awesome, and above the fantastic solo work we don't even need to speak and that/this simply because there aren't not enough words of praise around to do it justice anyhow anyway so larger than life great it is, point and fact. Then there's the phenomenal overwhelming massive and powerful, tight and precise and absolutely to the point played and yet 'amazingly' diverse and varying rhythm section that also really nothing but shines and adds much class and quality beefy and bulky weight and mass to IMMOLATION's "ATONEMENT", yes, and that's above all absolutely superb. All is then made round and finally cultivated and enriched by the deep and harsh, brutal grunted guttural lead vokillz that shine in a bloody and sinister, deadly and devastating way. All in all IMMOLATION's "ATONEMENT" is not just an absolutely breathtaking and overwhelming larger than life masterpiece and it is also not just maybe perhaps the very, very most best album in the anyhow incredible strong and massively impressive discography of IMMOLATION but it is also clearly and far ahead of all the other/potential 'rivals' outta there (that in a lot cases also released strong to great and phenomenal good albums this very year) and so definitely the by far best and most strongest Death Metal album of 2017, definitely and without a single doubt. My personal highlights are clearly "WHEN THE JACKALS COME", "THE DISTORTING LIGHT", "RISE THE HERETICS", "THROWN TO THE FIRE", "ATONEMENT", "ABOVE ALL", "FOSTERING THE DIVIDE", and "POWER OF GODS", hell yeahr, but don't do the mistake and think the other and also anyhow anyway only few not named songs would be sort of 'weak(er) stuff' because hell no also this songs totally rule and destroy everything and everyone. We then also get blasphemous and bestial, sinister and dark lyrics, one of the most gorgeous artworks I've seen this year (and also in years), and a blasting and bombing production sound that's nothing than a deadly striking wall of sound, yes, turning IMMOLATION's "ATONEMENT" then 'finally-finally' into the real deal and making it to the complete package. If you are into real Death Metal and you really still should not know or have IMMOLATION's "ATONEMENT" then do yourself the huge, huge favour and change this and this best instantly right now because this masterpiece definitely needs to be a (prominent) part of and in your record collection, definitely and also without any doubt. So, in short: Get it!!!

(10 of 10 points)

http://www.everlastingfire.com/ (- the link to a very cool fanpage of the band)

https://www.facebook.com/immolation (- the link to the facebook site of the band)

IMMOLATION - "WHEN THE JACKALS COME" /live\ (2017, "ATONEMENT")

SUFFOCATION - "...OF THE DARK LIGHT" (2017)

SUFFOCATION - "...OF THE DARK LIGHT"
(Running time: 35:22 minutes; 9 songs)
("Nuclear Blast Records"; 2017; CD):

Hey guys, yes, I'm already back again, oh hell yeahr, like yesterday announced and so here now comes the next dose for you, yes, the third one this weekend, yes, and I think that's pretty decent, yes, and so now without any longer ramblings straight into the action and this action is my review on SUFFOCATION's new album "...OF THE DARK LIGHT" released still pretty recently (or so...) this year of 2017 via the german "NUCLEAR BLAST RECORDS" label. "...OF TNE DARK LIGHT" is the 8th album by/of SUFFOCATION in their nearly thirty years of existence spanning career and the godfathers of Slam Death Metal return once again in an impressive  way, a very impresssive way. Somewhere between 'slammy' Brutal Death Metal and 'proggy' Tech Death Metal varying this U.S. Death Metal roughnecks deliver nine new songs full of intensity and sheer technically very high skilled brutality that's still incredible strong and excitingly diverse in its inner structure and conquers massively with its very strong own flavour and character and that shines with its very grapping and exciting, very strong and also intense as well as atmospheric songwriting that delivers stunning soul- and playful and exciting and rousing surprises and also truckloads of changes in the pace and the rhythmic architecture and structure of the songs as well as in the mood or better the atmosphere of the solitary songs as well as the whole album and turning SUFFOCATION's "...OF THE DARK LIGHT" into one hell of an exciting and interesting as well as simply just overwhelming and rousing ride over the complete (and anyhow too short) running time. Crushing and devastating guitars that deliver outstanding great and often surely 'tricky'n'proggy' leads and stunning solos as well as and especially a absolutely cracking and shredding rhythm work full of brute force and pure power and yet still creating a very strong and 'tight'n'thick' dark, cold, and sinister atmosphere, hell yeahr, and above all it all is very, very intense and this over all the time. Then the harsh and guttural, brutal grunted lead vocals only add up to it all. The massive and every resistance crushing rhythm section then finally backs it all fantastically beefy and bulky up and shines especially when it's all about the blast in an amazing way. My personal favorites are "CLARITY THROUGH DEPRIVATION", "THE WARMTH WITHIN THE DARK", "RETURN TO THE ABYSS", "...OF THE DARK LIGHT", and "SOME THINGS SHOULD BE LEFT ALONE", total killers, but don't make the mistake to think that the not mentioned songs would be anyhow anyway weak stuff, hell no, they also rule massively. Interesting and very well (to) the musick matching lyrics, a cold and dark artwork, and a blasting porduction sound then round it all up. All in all SUFFOCATION deliver with "...OF THE DARK LIGHT" a damn great new album and one hell of a strong Death Metal album that only adds up to the list of superb new very strong and impressive Death Metal albums so far this year of 2017. I can only recommend this masterpiece to you, highly recommend it.

(9 of 10 points)

https://www.facebook.com/suffocation (-the link to the Facebook site of the band)

SUFFOCATION - "RETURN TO THE ABYSS" (2017, "...OF THE DARK LIGHT")

DYING FETUS - "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH" (2017)

DYING FETUS - "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH"
(Running time: 54:05 minutes; 11 songs)
("Relapse Records"; 2017; CD):

Good morning guys (or at least over here it is morning time at 9:47 am currently right now - when I started working on this very record review posts right here, right now) and you see, yes, like I more or less announced it yesterday I am really trying to come up with more frequent posts finally again up here (to somehow get all the reviews on 2017 releases done...), yes, despise all the "shortness-in-time" currently and since September 2017 in general and so here now comes already the next dose for you and this time here you now get my 'long' overdue record review on the new DYING FETUS album "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH" released some months ago recently in 2017 via the almighty "RELAPSE RECORDS". Before I will start into the saturday and the proper weekend I will try to get this one done and then this will be the second new proper post this weekend and I will try to finish this weekend at least with a then third proper post tomorrow on sunday, yes, you see, my ambitions are pretty honest and outspoken, yes, and so now let us wait and bleed...ah... see how this will turn out; okay, and so now enough of the introducing smalltalk and just let's go one more time: Since DYING FETUS released their larger than life masterpiece "KILLING ON ADRENALINE" nearly twenty years ago or so I love this guys and what they do, live and on record. Over the last years I lost them sort of a little bit out of sight due to reasons we can accumulate and call real-life-stuff'n'issues but when they released "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH" this year and I first listened to the first songs up on YouTube they instantly grabbed me again and they took hold on me and simply decided to not let me loose again. DYING FETUS' "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH" is a massive and heavy, a brutal and deadly, aggressive and pissed off, sharp aimed and harsh slashing, musically high skilled slaughterfeast that crushes out of your speakers like a fire roaring and breathing ultra-heavy battle tank that's unleashed all guns blazing at you. With heavy machine guns like fireing ultra-heavy and über-brutal and yet still very diverse and multi-layered guitars that deliver the goods all the time and no matter if we look at the ryhthm work (with fantstic ultra-heavyness and pure diversity and great variations up to pretty radical changes in the rhythm architecture and structure of the songs) or the brilliant lead and solo work; and with absoultely stunning deep guttural grunted brutal vocals with that strong own DYING FETUS identity to it. Without mercy and with firey ambitions pushed forward the tank rolls on by a first class and very diverse rhythm section that takes no prisoners and knows no mercy, absolutely not, and that is damn tight, precise, bonesmashing heavy, sheer full force, to the point, and that also still offers a nice wide distance of variantions and a lot of great playful twists and turns. Just absolutely amazing stuff. Slamming and brutal Death Metal mixed with blasting Grindcore, really harsh grooving Hardcore, and all melted together by heavy blasting as fuck and high skilled damn technical Death Metal creating one more time again that very own and just awesome Deathgrind in/of that unique DYING FETUS way (often copied, but never beaten or just really rivaled); and "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH" is easily the best DYING FETUS album since "DESTROY THE OPPOSITION", at least so definitely in my book. And it definitely "gets-a-lot" (out-)of/(out-)from the fantastic songwriting, very intense and tight and yet very multi-layered and very rich'n'diverse, turning "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH" into a grapping and exciting ride from start to finish over all ist complete running time. Outspoken and harsh, just great and strong lyrics, a lovely and just perfect artwork, and also a stunning and dustdry production sound then finally turn DYING FETUS' "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH" into the complete package and one more time into the real deal. My personal favorites are "FIXATED ON DEVASTATION", "PANIC AMONGST THE HERD", "DIE WITH INTEGRITY", "IDEOLOGICAL SUBJUGATION", "WEAKEN THE STRUCTURE", "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH", and "INDUCE TERROR"; so if you ask me then start your discovery of "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH" with this absoulte masterpieces, hell yeahr, even at the end of the day the whole album is and so also the (anyhow only few) here not mentioned songs are just pure outstanding and superb stuff. DYING FETUS' "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH" is just a totally great album, period. And so if you are anyhow into really extreme musick then you should definitely call this masterpiece your own, hell yeahr,and so just go and get it. And that's it for now, now it's time to start into the saturday, yes, and so may you all have a great weekend; we'll read us soon again. (If it works out like planned then latest already again tomorrow on sunday...)

(9 of 10 points)

https://dyingfetus.bandcamp.com/ (-the link to the bandcamp site of the band)

DYING FETUS - "DIE WITH INTEGRITY" (2017, "WRONG ONE TO FUCK WITH")

INCANTATION - "PROFANE NEXUS" (2017)

INCANTATION - "PROFANE NEXUS"
(Running time: 42:38 minutes; 11 songs)
("Relapse Records"; 2017; CD):

Another day, another post, another record, another record-review, so you could maybe say and so now here we go again: After yesterday the Chicago Death Metal legends BROKEN HOPE and their this year's masterpiece "MUTILATED AND ASSIMILATED" were reviewed up here by me for you I feel like sticking with/into the extreme musick stuff in general and with/into Death Metal in particular. If you know me you know that I fucking love Death Metal and especially the various sorts and kinds and flavours of U.S. Death Metal and beside many others the mighty INCANTATION had been, were, still are, and probably will always be favorites of me, myself, and I, yes, and so now here for you comes my review on their new 2017 album "PROFANE NEXUS" released via the still strong going "RELAPSE RECORDS" still pretty recently this very year. I love this grandmasters of Blasphemic Death Metal or Satanic Death Metal from the States since I first listened to their almighty classick "ONWARD TO GOLGOTHA" some day in middle-school back then in probably around 1994 on my old walkman on a self-recorded tape probably while riding (on) my skateboard to school or back from school and was totally blown away by this absolutely devastating and atomizing power, force, intensity, and just sheer sinister and evil energy, fuck yeah', and if we keep in mind that back then I was sort of 13 years young and today I'm 36 years old you maybe get a clou (of) what this style of musick in general and this very band in particular more or less always meant and still mean to me. That said not all INCANTATION albums were great but the very most of them were great or at least damn good stuff, so in my book. And now in 2017 "PROFANE NEXUS" is/was unleashed and INCANTATION really conquer and they conquer in a mighty and no prisoners taking way. Their very dark and harsh, sinister and very, very brutal and aggressive Death Metal enriched with bonesmashing and skullcracking (Funeral) Doom Metal impressions and cultivated with tons of great guitar riffs, fantastic guitar solos, and 'just' damn dark yet very bright shining symphonic guitar leads totally slashes any resistance away and sounds so damn fresh and alive/lively as well as offers a lot of cool little surprises, yes, this is 'just' nothing but absolutely first class Death Metal from this blasphemous roughnecks from Johnstown, Pennsylvania/USA and this on a very high level of skill and quality and with a strong own identity and character to it all. The songwriting is very fresh and pretty diverse yet first-and-foremost all the time incredible intense and 'woven-through' by a tight and 'just' pure evil and really sinister atmosphere and the outcome are dark, heavy, and very grapping masterpieces of songs of finest Death Metal that offer a great variety of pace-variations and sheer overwhelming intensity and cool twists-and-turns along the ride. The biggest shining trademarks are for sure the marching and hammering guitars, followed by the brutal and still incredible deep guttural vocals, all backed up by a massive and ass-tight, damn precise and everything down-tearing rhythm section. Or in short: Death Metal how it should be, Metal of Death, the real deal. Great lyrics, a fantastic artwork, and very deep-droning and heavy production sound finally enrich and cultivate it all in a great and even more impressive way. Yes, INCANTATION's "PROFANE NEXUS" is so far definitely one of my highlights this year and one of the strongest Death Metal Releases in 2017 so far, so in my book and so I can only recommend it to you, highly recommend it, so gout and get it if you missed out on it so far. This one just damn bloody rules. A blasphemous masterpiece we have here. All hail INCANTATION.

(9 of 10 points)

https://www.incantation.com/ (-the link to the homepage of the band, check it out)

INCANTATION - "ANCIENTS ARISE" (2017, "PROFANE NEXUS")

BROKEN HOPE - "MUTILATED AND ASSIMILATED" (2017)

BROKEN HOPE - "MUTILATED AND ASSIMILATED"
(Running time: 40:18 minutes; 12 songs)
("Century Media Records"; 2017; CD + DVD):

Okay folks, I guess it's been again already a while since my last post up here saw the light of the day, hm, two weeks or so I guess, so yes, it's really about time I finally give you some new food up here, okay, and so I will now do, yes, and so here comes the next post what means the next record review and this time you get my review on the new 2017 full length album by/of BROKEN HOPE, the legends of brutal Death Metal blasting out of Chicago, Illinois/USA finally again. I can't really remember how long it's been since I listened to the last new BROKEN HOPE album but it's been a long while since then. Their 2013 'comeback' album "OMEN OF DISEASE"  is still to  this very day unknown to me and so their last album that I listened to when it was released was their 1999 slasher "GROTESQUE BLESSINGS", yes, this was back then when I was 18 years young... damn it... and now in 2017 with being 36 years and already a half year old "MUTILATED AND ASSIMILATED" appeared and this to me pretty much out of nowhere and, you know what... it totally conquered me like way back when I was 18 years young... and even more, because, yes, Old School for sure but damn fresh and alive/lively and without any lame and stale retro bullcrap, oh boy, what a devastating and intense and suprisingly fresh and totally relevant/up-to-date album it is, hell yeahr!!! This is powerful and massive U.S. Death Metal with a very strong own identity varying between totally devastating blast speed 'slaughterfests' and every resistance into the ground smashing fast raging up tempo parts to absolutely no prisoners taking mosh and slam parts and sinister and sick down paced moments, all enriched in a fantastic way by/with weird and sickening, totally mind blowing guitar leads, symphonic-to-'dissymphonic' harmonies (the leads as well as the riffs), and guitar solos, delivered in the form of fantastic and despise all the ultra-heavyness and sheer massive brutality yet still and all the time very diverse and multi-layered songs done by high skilled musicians and delivered via very, very strong songwriting. Prepare yourself for atomizing guitars, deep grunted and harsh growled lead vocals, and a tight and damn brutal hammering rhythm section, as well as totally fresh ideas and surprises and especially the guitars really shine in a bright sinister and sick, aggressive and mean, pissed off, nasty light. The songs are very diverse and multi-layered, it happens really a lot in them, you should really invest some time in BROKEN HOPE's "MUTILATED AND ASSIMILATED" to really get it all, hell yeahr, and trust me when I say that this is time wisely invested and spent. And what really makes this album even better at the end of the day is that it is incredible intense from start to finish, over the complete running time, over the whole distance. Also it breaths a very own stunning brutal and weird sick atmosphere and spirit right from the get-go and also over the whole distance. And with the brilliant guitar outro of the phenomenal "MALICIOUS MEATHOLES" we also get some very strong and cool Jazz impressions. A beautiful sickening artwork, absolutely over the top and great lyrics, and a very heavy and bombing production sound finally make it all round. Ah, and we also get a mind-blowing "SWAMPED IN GORE" and "GOREHOG" medley as the finishing track of the album. Superb!!! Okay, I think I've said so much anything that I had to say about BROKEN HOPE's "MUTILATED AND ASSIMILATED", yes, this is just a damn great release that I can only highly, highly recommend to any fan of good and real Death Metal in general and of brutal U.S. Death Metal in particular and also of really brutal and truly extreme musick in general as well. My personal favorites are currently "THE MEEK SHALL INHERIT SHIT", "MUTILATED AND ASSIMILATED", "OUTBACK INCEST CLAN", "MALICIOUS MEATHOLES", "THE CARRION EATERS", "HELL'S HANDPUPPETS", and the larger than life "SWAMPED IN GOREHOG" medley. But also the not mentioned (anyhow only few) tracks are anyhow damn fucking strong slashers. So, yes, if you still don't know or have it, why the bloody hell ever, you should make sure to finally change this as soon as possible and this best right now. Ah, and btw, the package also comes with a DVD that conatins the 2015 "OBSCENE EXTREME" gig of BROKEN HOPE and that's a really nice 'goody'. This is great, this is the real deal, this is Death fuckin' Metal!!!

(9 of 10 Points)

http://brokenhope.com/ (-the link to the homepage of the band)

BROKEN HOPE - "THE MEEK SHALL INHERIT SHIT" (2017, "MUTILATED AND ASSIMILATED")