Roundup – January 2019

Happy new year! Christmas might seem like a distant dream now but rest assured you can feel consoled by the promise of stellar releases in 2019. January has boasted some incredible album and single releases and February is looking even better. We’re going to be utterly spoilt this year! I’m excited to share my first roundup of 2019 with you, as usual you can read about my Top 3 albums of the month but I’ve also included my favourite singles of January to whet your appetite for the bands’ forthcoming albums!

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Metalmance’s Top 3 Albums of January

The albums released this month have really set the bar high for the remainder of the year! January has seen a mixture of releases from the tech wizardry of BORN OF OSIRIS to the black metal madness of ASTROPHOBOS and my Top 3 are equally a mixed bag; melodic death metal, beatdown/deathcore and progressive metal. Who made my first Top 3 of 2019? Continue reading below!

1

SOILWORK – Verkligheten. Release date: 11 January

I am so relieved Verkligheten has been well received by SOILWORK fans and death metal fans alike. This album has been a grower on me and since writing my review I’ve fallen in love with this album even more. SOILWORK never fail to release a good album. Sure, they might be getting a bit mellower with age but Verkligheten features enough punishing riffs and elements to keep the most hardcore fan happy. All the tracks on here sound like SOILWORK but it’s not a repeat of 2016’s The Ride Majestic, proving the band are always reinventing themselves but never selling out. Fingers crossed the band still have a fair few albums in them yet. Read my fuller review of Verkligheten by clicking the link below.

Soilwork – Verkligheten review

2

THE LAST TEN SECONDS OF LIFE – Machina Non Grata. Release date: 11 January

This is utter filth. Their beatdown-infused deathcore is always a punishing force but with Machina Non Grata, they’ve really ramped the brutality up. Their filthy riffs mixed with their ferocious vocals is a terrifying mix but it absolutely slays. Tracks such as Axe To Grind and Psychophrenia obliterate the senses and considering it’s quite a lengthy album (14 tracks) THE LAST TEN SECONDS OF LIFE never ease the savagery. 2019 has already seen one of the most brutal albums of the year in the form of Machina Non Grata, it will be frightening to see which brutal release tops this. You have been warned.

3

EVERGREY – The Atlantic. Release Date: 25 January

Could this be the best EVERGREY album ever?! I must admit I wasn’t too pumped before I heard this because I loved their last album, 2016’s The Storm Within so much, but I was wrong to doubt the Swedish progressive metal band wouldn’t be able to top its predecessor. The Atlantic features bigger riffs, bigger choruses and bigger feels than ever before. It’s heavy and melodic in equal measures which EVERGREY have always been masters of, but somehow on The Atlantic the balance is just right. The band just seem to get better and better with each album and this record has a much fuller sound making EVERGREY that all more encompassing. You can thank me later for the recommendation.

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Top Singles of January

I’ve lost track of all the kickass singles released this month! The list below is only chipping at the surface but may I present to you my favourite singles from January.

EMPLOYED TO SERVE – Force Fed

Getting ready to release their forthcoming album Eternal Forward Motion through Spinefarm Records, Woking’s heaviest export EMPLOYED TO SERVE have finally dropped their first single off the new album and it’s a corker! Force Fed is by far one of the ballsiest tracks the band have ever released, and with the added ‘clean vocals’ it is probably one of the most dynamic. It feels like EMPLOYED THE SERVE have quickened the pace, making Force Fed a beastly force to contend with. A potential album of the year? I believe so. Below the video is a link to my live review of the band’s headline show in Norwich last year.

Employed To Serve/Conjurer/God Complex/Nervewrecker live review

 

DREAMSHADE – Question Everything

We all know I hold Switzerland’s DREAMSHADE in high regard so let’s cut to the chase here. With each new single they prove they cannot write a bad song. Question Everything is one hell of a catchy track with plenty of riffs and bold textures to keep every DREAMSHADE fan happy. The band still haven’t announced any album release plans yet but you can read more about what the band are all about and what they’re aiming to achieve in my interview and song review links below the video. For now, treat yourself and watch their hilarious new video for Question Everything!

INTERVIEW: Dreamshade

Dreamshade – On My Own

 

BASTARD – Snake Hips

It’s been a while since I heard such a catchy hardcore song, but Norwich’s BASTARD have hit the nail on the head here with their newest single Snake Hips. 80s synths, gang vocals, sexy lyrics, beefy CANCER BATS-esque riffs…cor BASTARD you ain’t half spoiling us. The confidence and swagger displayed here is irresistible yet there is just enough rawness and metallic goodness to entice the most ‘hardcore’ of metal fans. In the age of overly technical wankery, sometimes it’s delightful to indulge in something more straight to the point…and something damn groovy. So stick on Snake Hips, grab your lover, and start movin’!

 

CARTOGRAPHS – Peace Was Never Mine To Be Found

Danish post-rock band CARTOGRAPHS are nearing the release of their debut album Wilt & Blossom through Prime Collective on 1st March and their first single Peace Was Never Mine To Be Found is a stunning example of what’s to come. With blackgaze textures, soaring riffs and ambient passages, this single is the soundtrack to cold and tense January days. Recorded live and produced by Chris Kreutzfeldt who also produced the likes of CABAL, MØL and GHOST IRIS, you can guarantee the album will be top notch quality. Expect to hear more of CARTOGRAPHS this year.

 

CHAOS REIGNS – Peripheral

Ahead of their appearance at Downsurge Festival, London hardcore band CHAOS REIGNS have dropped this absolute banger, Peripheral. The video was filmed in one of my favourite London venues, The Dome and the track sounds like the lovechild of THE GHOST OF A THOUSAND, EVERY TIME I DIE and CANCER BATS so you can probably gauge what a riot this band are. Fast, to the point and raw (oo-er) CHAOS REIGNS are another exciting addition to the blossoming UK hardcore scene. Catch these guys before they get huge!

 

FROM SORROW TO SERENITY – We Are Liberty

Last year at Tech Fest, Glasgow’s FROM SORROW TO SERENITY absolutely blew me away so I’m really curious to see what’s in store when the band release their new album Reclaim on 22nd March through Long Branch Records. The album will be first featuring new singer Gaz King (ex-NEXILVA) and he’s on top form in this new single, We Are Liberty. One word springs to mind when listening to this track…RIFFS!!! I’d be surprised if this track and album didn’t propel the band into the big leagues as their potential is HUGE. Everything about this track is spot on, you’ll be silly not to check it out. A link to my review of their set at Tech Fest is below the video.

From Sorrow to Serenity in Tech Fest 2018 live review

 

EQUIPOISE – Waking Divinity

Just when tech death fans could finally recover from the influx of stellar releases last year, American band EQUIPOISE drop their new single Waking Divinity and sends the tech death scene into meltdown. Fans of OBSCURA, BEYOND CREATION and INFERI will want to take note here as the parallels cannot be ignored (mainly because the band features members from the latter two bands and also an ex-THE FACELESS member) but the technicality and quality of the songwriting is absolutely staggering. Their forthcoming album Demiurgus will be released 8th March through The Artisan Era, but until then, make sure you indulge yourself in Waking Divinity. The bar of tech death in 2019 has been set high already.

 

TRAITORS – Left To Rot

Next month sees Florida band TRAITORS head out on tour with THE LAST TEN SECONDS OF LIFE and ANGELMAKER (both of whom are featured in this roundup as well) and have just demolished our senses with the devastating new single Left To Rot. The single is off their forthcoming album Repent, due for release on 25th February, and if the album is anything like this single then we are all in for a sore neck from banging our heads too hard. The down-tempo filth TRAITORS have belched absolutely pummels the senses and makes us surrender to its nasty beats. Don’t listen to this track alone.

 

THE ROYAL – State of Dominance

Metalmance faves THE ROYAL are almost ready to release their third album Deathwatch on 8th March through Long Branch Records and if the singles are anything to go by then we’re in for an exciting release! The band dropped new single State of Dominance this month and it features some irresistible keys giving it an air of SHOKRAN but with a metallic crunch. THE ROYAL have always had the ability to crossover genres but this sounds like THE ROYAL at their most versatile and most brutal yet. The video includes footage from many of their tours and shows from last year (their Tech Fest appearance being one!) and is a visual representation of their gruelling tour schedule. THE ROYAL are one of the hardest working bands I know, fingers crossed this will be the year it all pays off.

 

ANGELMAKER – Hollow Heart

I must admit Hollow Heart, the new single by Vancouver metallers ANGELMAKER is the first time I have really be ‘wowed’ by the band. Hollow Heart was the first single of 2019 I got mega excited about and it’s still a thrill listening to it now. The unforgiving brutality is relentless and it’s got me all hot under the collar. Their forthcoming album is still shrouded in mystery but one thing’s for sure, it’s not going to be a disappointment. I needed this track to blow away the cobwebs from Christmas and when their next single drops then my body will be ready. Question is, are you prepared?

Herod – Sombre Dessein

I recently stated on Instagram that 2019 would be the year for black metal and sludgy hardcore. I would be lying if I said I didn’t have HEROD in mind when I said this, as the Swiss group fall into the latter category with their progressive sludge and their hardcore brutality. Sombre Dessein is the band’s second record and the first to feature new vocalist Mike Pilat (ex-THE OCEAN) who has quickly become one of the band’s greatest strengths. Mastered by CULT OF LUNA’s Magnus Lindberg and boasting epic, heavy soundscapes, Sombre Dessein is the soundtrack to the death of a civilisation.

Fork Tongue Intro gets the album off to an atmospheric and crushing start. When Fork Tongue eventually worms its way in, it could almost be classed as dissonant with its suffocating, doomy tendencies. Featuring Bill Steer from CARCASS and the supplementary guitar playing from Pilat, Fork Tongue ends up becoming a brutal assault. You will soon learn what I mean about THAT RIFF dominating the track. Absolutely colossal.

Lead single Reckoning is a savage delight. There is an air of KNUT’s Terraformer (another heavy band from Switzerland!) which might give you an idea of the atmospheric heaviness at hand here. Even the clean vocals on Reckoning leave an eerie overtone. A truly monstrous song, you could do worse than start here.

This is followed by Don’t Speak Last, a 10 minute opus which begins with a claustrophobic ambience, tension and a sense of impending doom. The gradual build up becomes overwhelming until everything collapses into a storming spread of chaos. HEROD channel their inner DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN during the hectic moments but the commanding outro hypnotises you into submission.

Fifth track Silent Truth sounds like a metal version of the Guinness advert with the horses in the waves (you know the one). This is apt as the song feels like the equivalent of being trampled by wild beasts. One of the heaviest songs on Sombre Dessein, Silent Truth is anything but silent. If you feel you need something a bit tamer after that assault then Mourning Grounds has got you covered. The mesmerising, clean vocals carry the song until it erupts into A LIFE ONCE LOST-esque barrage and an ending TEXTURES would be proud of.

Sombre Dessein comes to its devastating conclusion with There Will Be Gods. The mostly instrumental track is one of my musical highlights of 2019 so far. The sludgy grooves, the skull-crushing riffs, the euphoric climax…this song is a triumph and guarantees Sombre Dessein gets the send off it deserves. This year is going to be one hell of a year for HEROD on the basis of this superb album. All hail the progressive sludge.

Mastiff – Plague

Listening to MASTIFF has finally put to rest my thought of what hellish sounds would be summoned if COALESCE wrestled with NAILS. If you’re after some sludgy hardcore with a powerviolence bite, then look no further than Plague, the hardcore merchants from Hull’s first release for APF Records. Much like the breed of dog MASTIFF share their name with, this band are a big and heavy beast, with aggressive howls you would not want to hear by yourself at night.

If the savagery of their work wasn’t brutal enough for you, then their lyrical content might give it the edge. Plague draws from the misery of the country and their disgust at the false humanity and deceit pouring from social media. Add to this the fact the album was recorded in one room and with no tracking at Studio 94 in Hull, and you get the idea of the relentless ferocity MASTIFF so unforgivingly unleash.

The band kick things off with Hellcircle, an aptly named track as the opening minute sounds like resonance from the bowels of Hell itself. When things get going it simulates the image of NAPALM DEATH having a scrap with MALEVOLENCE. Very nasty. Things slow down a notch with Bubonic,  which features an irresistible blackened element to the opening riff. There is a glorious sense of KYLESA from the middle onwards with the aggressive grooves and doomy stance.

The suitably titled Brainbleed mirrors how it would sound being bludgeoned to death by NAILS while CROWBAR watch on. The sobbing from the end of the track leaks into Quarantine, a swampy and suffocating ode to darkness, filth and suffering that the likes of LEECHED would be proud of. Lead single Vermin belches and vomits much of the same but with such an infectious groove it will catch like the plague.

Torture does what it says on the tin. A notoriously noisy and slow affair at the beginning, it gets you in a firm headlock before it pummels you silly for the duration of the last minute. Absolutely glorious. Much like Weep, a violent steamroller of fury crushing all in its wake. Definitely one of the more straight up ‘hardcore’ offerings on Plague, this track is stupidly heavy and violent.

The final nail in the coffin is Black Death, a disgustingly slow track of NERVEWRECKER proportions. What is most terrifying of all is this track was recorded in one take. Only bands who sell their souls attempt that feat now these days right? Considering Black Death is a staggering 9 minutes in length, that is a devilish achievement. In a scene full of over-produced, shiny and over-polished music, it’s so refreshing to hear a gritty, raw and unforgiving record. You can be sure Plague will be my soundtrack to the impending apocalypse this year.

Soilwork – Verkligheten

I am delighted that one of my first reviews of 2019 is that of SOILWORK’s forthcoming album Verkligheten. This will be the band’s eleventh album and it feels like a long wait since their last release, 2015’s fantastic The Ride Majestic  (the longest gap between SOILWORK studio albums to date). One thing that SOILWORK fans and critics alike always comment on is how the Swedish melodic death metal group always evolve and release stellar albums even after two decades in the game. Even their rarities album Death Resonance had better material than some of their contemporaries (not naming names). But after such a long time between albums and with vocalist Björn Strid and guitarist David Andersson also playing in Swedish hard rock band THE NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA, does SOILWORK stand the test of time in 2019?

We’re introduced to the album by its title track opener, a slow-burning yet mesmerising instrumental which gets Verklighteten going at an unexpectedly slow pace. Thankfully second track Arrival blows the cobwebs away with its blistering, blackened intro. SOILWORK are back in business! It’s clear The Ride Majestic was a springboard for this stellar song. The big chorus is backed up full textures of sound. It’s glorious how energetic and alive this song sounds.

Bleeder Despoiler is the ultimate groovefest, like Stabbing the Drama 2.0, but it is Full Moon Shoals which provides the first surprise of the album. It is a lot more on the metallic side of SOILWORK than expected, but also with a big, cheesy chorus making it one of the band’s most poppiest offerings. Strid somehow gets away with it because his vocals are always top-notch.

The intro of fifth track The Nurturing Glance is richly melodic and the old school verse continues the metallic tinge to proceedings. As expected, there is another storming chorus but it is the melodic riffs which steal the show here. Having said this, When the Universe Spoke steals all the attention away. This is a song which is equal parts melodic and ferocious. It’s a fresh and heavy SOILWORK which provides a dense centre to Verkligheten. It was a good choice having this track in the middle of the album to prevent it sounding samey.

Unfortunately Stålfågel doesn’t keep the energy up with its classic metal infused melody. The Wolves Are Back in Town brings things back to more of an old school SOILWORK sound, but it is Witan which provides one of the more interesting tracks of the second half of Verkligheten. Witan has a subtle symphonic element to it which takes it to the next level, but the groove is irresistible.

After the forgettable The Ageless Whisper, SOILWORK deliver a corker of a tune with Needles and Kin. The instrumentation ramps up with this song, with the new drummer Bastian Thusgaard really coming to the fore here. Add some guest vocals by Tomi Joutsen from AMORPHIS and you’ve got a winner.

Last album The Ride Majestic ended on a spectacular finale, so I was expecting Verkligheten to also have an exhilarating conclusion. However, we are instead presented with You Aquiver, which despite its catchy melodies and charming riffs, doesn’t feel like a fitting closer for such a celebrated band. It leaves me wishing the album finished with the previous song. 

Verkligheten is still a really enjoyable album, but it loses momentum halfway through. Despite this, and to answer my question posed at the start, SOILWORK continue to prove doubters wrong. Yes they sound a bit mellower on this album, but they do not sound stale and past their sell by date just yet. They’re still churning out enough interesting ideas to remain relevant and if they can stay a head up above their peers there’s no reason why we couldn’t enjoy SOILWORK for two more decades.

Master’s Call – Morbid Black Trinity EP

Nothing better than starting the year with some British black metal and 2019 is no different. Wolverhampton’s dark metal troupe MASTER’S CALL is kicking off the year in extraordinarily devastating fashion with their debut EP Morbid Black Trinity . The three intense tracks encompass the darkness of faith, body and spirit, but this dark side of faith hits closer to home for the band. Frontman Shayan was born in Iran, where metal and anti-religious lyrics are considered blasphemous and are banned. Despite the risk of jail and even execution, Shayan continued to write and perform black metal until he moved to the UK in 2011 to pursue his freedom as a metal musician. Judging by the quality of his work and his fellow bandmates’ writing on Morbid Black Trinity, MASTER’S CALL is truly a huge gain for the black metal scene.

The evil of the world is the main influence for opening track From Once Beneath the Cursed. Storming in with a metallic riff DARKTHRONE would weep at, MASTER’S CALL belch their horror upon the ears with their riffs of malice and grit. There is an air of CATHEDRAL to the vocals especially, but the relentless pace and outflow of delicious evil pools in your ravenous lugholes until you get your fill of darkness.

Second track The Spire Cranes represents the towering holy buildings that shadow the people oppressed by their faith. Like the subject matter, this track is of a colossal nature, and the only things being oppressed is the light and hope during this morbid anthem. It’s becoming increasingly evident that the band do not shy away from old-school black metal elements, but they deliver such elements with a modern attitude and a massive sound.

Third and final track My Eyes Are The Night is from the perspective of a hunter who preys on vulnerable victims and manipulates them to sacrifice themselves for the false hope of a greater existence. It’s clear where the inspiration for this track has manifested from, but is executed in such a way with blistering passages, that makes the powerful message resonate more. The stunning, blackened riffs carry the song and ensures the EP is brought to a mesmerising close. Brilliant stuff, expect to hear more of MASTER’S CALL in 2019!