Evoken (2018) Hypnagogia 'Review'

Band: Evoken
Country of Origin: United States

Genre: Funeral Doom metal

Type: Full Length

Format: CD Digipak

Length Approx.: 01:00:00 min.

Release Date: 11-09-2018

Release Label: Profound Lore Records

IR Classification: Good (4.3 / 5)

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It sounds cold and somber with an unmeasurable sadness and hypnotism at the same time.

Evoken from New Jersey, United States has been around since 2004 always has been playing their unique style of Funeral Doom Metal with Death Metal Influences, their sound makes you remember bands like Esoteric, Disembowelment, Thergothon or Skepticism the distinctive dense clashing of melodies and misery are catchy, moving prodigiously slow with a deeper feeling of depressive and rabid bitterness, but always leaving enough room for those heavy synthesizers that create a crushing eerie ambiance, if you haven't experience at all the Funeral Doom Metal, this might be one opportunity to do it and break through into one of the most inaccessible genres. 

After six years of absence Evoken returns with their sixth full-length album entitled "Hypnagogia" through Profound Lore Records again and not only that also for the first time in their discography we can see a stable, solid and committed line-up to deliver a vicious and ambitious continuation of their previous work entitled "Atra Mors" released back in 2012, Evoken are founders members Vince Verkay behind the drums, John Paradiso on guitars and vocals and they are complemented by Don Zaros on keyboards, David Wagner on bass and Randy Cavanaugh on guitars, "Hypnagogia" contains eight tracks with an epic and unforgettable length.

"Hypnagogia" opens up with "The Fear After" built up with an eerie intro that leads off into the darkest path full of misery and pain, tearing apart the dead emotions within you, then is followed by "Valorous Consternation" frontman John Paradiso comes with a singular heavy guitar riff appeal the most gloomy landscapes loaded with a bitter sadness the growling vocals are abysmal beyond your consciousness, let's skip into "Too Feign Ebullience" it attracts a twisted and morbid hopelessness, beautifully arranged and stylishly captures the heaviest harmonies creating a feeling of abandonment, in my opinion, the best track of the album, "Hypnagogia" is an instrumental and one of the shortest track in the album and delves with the use of moderate droning passages, next is "Ceremony of Bleeding" the used melodies remind me a little the first album of the Dutch band The Gathering "Always..." back in 1992, Evoken are able to craft a dense atmosphere almost perceptible by your skin, let's go directly to the last track "The Weald of Perished Men" it sounds cold and somber with an unmeasurable sadness and hypnotism at the same time, the growling vocals contrast good enough with the music enhancing the whole experience.

This is one of the few albums I would consider as one of the best of 2018 in my personal playlist because everything falls in the right place melodies, pace, timing, the drumming is superb, the synthesizer is mesmerizing, the bass lines are excellent and the guitar work is stunning and the vocals are just perfect, far as the production it sounds flawless, few and almost unnoticeable cracks that won't bother you at all, anyway as I stated at the beginning if you want to dabble into this genre this is a good album to start and if you are a seasoned follower of the genre it won't let you down.

Stay True… Stay Metal… Stay Brutal…™

Track List:

01. The Fear After │ 02. Valorous Consternation │ 03. Schadenfreude │ 04. Too Feign Ebullience │ 05. Hypnagogia (Instrumental) │ 06. Ceremony of Bleeding │ 07. Hypnopompic (Instrumental) │ 08. The Weald of Perished Men

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Hate Eternal (2018) Upon Desolate Sands 'Review

Band: Hate Eternal
Country of Origin: United States

Genre: Death metal

Type: Full Length

Format: CD Digipak

Length Approx.: 39:00 min.

Release Date: 10-26-2018

Release Label: Season of Mist

IR Classification: Good (4.4 / 5)

Listen to our review! (English)

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Merciless from beginning to end that's how sound this devilish opus.

Erik Rutan and company return with their sixth sonic assault, aptly titled “Upon Desolate Sands” but, believe me, this is an album that will not accumulate dust in your shelf, not at all. Being very honest, I must say that I am not a huge fan of Hate Eternal, mainly because I have considered their previous work as being overproduced and lacking any emotion or catchiness. Nonetheless, this opus is filled with so many surprises, balancing the unmerciful onslaught of brutal riffs with a pretty dynamic showcase of superb drum work and solid basslines. So, let’s go ahead and take a much closer at what this album has to offer.

The opening track, “The Violent Fury” is just that: a relentless ass-whooping of catchy riffs and rapid drum work, while Erik Rutan furiously barks his commanding vocals, which, at times, can get lost in the background while the guitars and drums take centerpiece, occasionally allowing bassist Hannes Grossmann to delight us with his technical basslines, adding a nice touch to the composition.
“What Lies Beyond” opens in a slow and menacing style, as a prelude for what’s to come. I noticed in the opening riffs, the bass rears its ugly head, and then, the rapid riffing takes place, unleashing the aural assault where Erik combines velocity with a little bit of atmosphere, adding a sense of brooding, before delighting the ears with a great guitar solo. This is a great track that combines a mid-paced tempo with a great amount of speed.

“Vengeance Striketh” once again combines a mid-paced tempo, and the drum work has a “military march” pace to it, but the bass stands out on his own, coming out much clear and accompanying the onslaught of riffs. This track has an instrumental section that has a groovy feel to it, before deconstructing into heavier riffage. Vocally, Erik resorts to a dual vocal assault, which augments the aggression, and to top it off, the closing guitar solo, damn!  Pretty melodious but adds a great touch to this track to close it with style.

“Nothingness of Being”. This track starts off with a pretty sinister feeling to it, combining a somewhat slower pace in the guitars, but the rhythm section counters it with speed. This time, the drum work courtesy of J.J Hrubovcak is a little bit slower and focused on atmosphere, but the work with the double-bass is simply relentless, not slowing down for one bit.  We have another great guitar solo that emphasizes mood over a technicality, which closes this track efficiently.

“All Hope Destroyed”. My goodness, the name fits it perfectly. This track is hell-bent on punishing the listener with its avalanche of heavy riffage and hideous basslines. The riffs combine a great deal of technicality but believe me, the brutality is not sacrificed at all. Added on to that, the drum work is quite varied, combining bursts of speed with plenty of rolls and fills, to match perfectly with the onslaught. Here we have another guitar solo with a good dose of feeling and mood, to wrap it up quite nicely.

“Portal of Myriad” has a pretty strange sounding opening riff, only to break down into a destructive drumming assault. The riffs are quite ominous while the bass compliments the guitars, offering a dual assault of rhythm and mood. Early on the track, we have this moody guitar solo, while the drums slow down just enough for the bass to continue making an act of presence. As the album fades out, it takes a little pause to reprise the strange-sounding riffs of the earlier moments, only to brutalize you once again with its crushing guitar/drum attack.

“Dark Age of Ruin” more than makes up for its title. The opening sequence has an evil sounding guitar/bass combination, in order to make way for the blast-beat assault, which, in this occasion, seems to be focused on delivering as much punishment as possible. There are moments when the bass lines really add a great touch to enhance the song structures, and it is on the brief, but slow sections when it allows the listener to be impressed. The guitar solo on this track has a pretty groovy feel, paving the way for the ending section, which slows down a notch to wrap it up.


The title track starts in an ominous style, with a few feminine chants which set an eerie mood in order for a great assault in all senses, with the three instruments collaborating together to develop one of the strongest tracks of the whole album,  in order to close with an instrumental track, titled “For Whom We Have Lost”, which is nothing short of magnificent, due to its incredible and moody riffs.

To wrap it up, I sincerely believe that Hate Eternal have outdone themselves in this record. The combination of brutality, slow passages, varied and interesting drum work have created a monstrous record that does not shy away from being groovy as well. Production- wise, I think that there is vast room for improvement because, as I had stated before, sometimes the guitars and drums drown out the vocals, and the bass only appears on the slower sections, so I think that this instrument deserves much exposure. Erik and the boys are great musicians, but I think the production needs more improvement.

Stay True… Stay Metal… Stay Brutal…™

Written by: Juan Jose Montiel

Track List:

01. The Violent Fury │ 02. What Lies Beyond │ 03. Vengeance Striketh │ 04. Nothingness of Being │ 05. All Hope Destroyed │ 06. Portal of Myriad │ 07. Dark Age of Ruin │ 08. Upon Desolate Sands │ 09. For Whom We Have Lost (Instrumental) 

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Arsis (2018) Visitant 'Review'

Band: Arsis

Country of Origin: United States

Genre: Technical Melodic Death Metal

Type: Full Length

Format: CD

Length Approx.: 48:00 min.

Release Date: 11-02-2018

Release Label: Agonia Records

IR Classification: Good (4.2 / 5)

Listen to our review! (English)

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Technique and melody meet again.

Arsis hailing from Virginia, United States is delivering their sixth full-length album titled "Visitant" with eleven tracks of unrelenting and uncompromised Technical Death Metal with a dash of melodies that sounds intoxicating, the debut album "A Celebration of Guilt" released back in 2004 was immense and bring the band to a level of exposure unexpected, so it was impossible to miss the opportunity to express my opinion about their newest release.

The current band members are James Malone in the guitars and vocals, Noah Martin in the bass, Brandon Ellis in the guitar and Shawn Priest behind the drums, the lineup has been steady since 2012, and they are responsible for the very divided reviews that arise their previous album titled "Unwelcome" released in 2013, so with this new album putting them to the test we will see a more mature and compact band in their sound, their album "Visitant" was produced by Arsis and Mark Lewis and was mixed and mastered at MRL Studios in Nashville, Tennessee.

The albums open with "Tricking the Gods" welcome you with its hybrid sound of Technical Death metal and the melodies inflicted with a pretty well drum done, "Hells Sworn" carries with itself such energy with a catchy guitar riff, the guitar solo sounds frantic and leaves you wanting more, "Easy Prey" unwrap fast and aggressive leaves the listener with no choice but to join in an unstoppable headbang along the music and again successfully insert a memorable guitar solo, "Fathoms" is very dynamic the bass it rumbles fiercely and the guitars unceasingly permeated in melodies but refined fretwork, "As Deep as Your Flesh" and "A Pulse Keeping Time with the Dark" both are demented spells at mid-pace that allow you to catch your breath, "Funereal Might" kicks off with an energetic drum work followed with an intense and schizophrenic guitar riff, Arsis knows how to manage their delivery always keeping things interesting, "Death Vow" brings us a thrilling guitar work well intertwined alongside with the vibrant bass  lines, while the drums are beaten down mercilessly, "Dead is Better" start pounding from the beginning with such violence but is damned with insane melodies that doesn't let you go, followed by "Unto the Knife" sounds ominous with irreverent grooves and hilarious drums the vocals are the classic deep growl-screamed but mesmerizing at the right time, the last track "His Eyes" is a cover song from the Australian New Wave band called Pseudo Echo the song was released within their album debut "Autumnal Park" back in 1984, so far, in my opinion, Arsis performed a good cover track, not impressive but not forgettable.

At the end Arsis I truly believe they were able to pull out a more than decent technical and melodic death metal album, despite the long period out of the studios, allow me to rephrase as follow, technique and melody meet again to deliver such intensity, aggression and an album that redefine their career, catch them in their next tour wherever they go will be a great show.

Stay True… Stay Metal… Stay Brutal…™

Track List:

01. Tricking the Gods │ 02. Hell Sworn │ 03. Easy Prey │ 04. Fathoms │ 05. As Deep as Your Flesh │ 06. A Pulse Keeping Time with the Dark │ 07. Funereal Might │ 08. Death Vow │ 09. Dead Is Better │ 10. Unto the Knife │ 11. His Eyes (Pseudo Echo cover)

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Profanatica (2018) Altar of the Virgin Whore [EP] 'Review'

Band: Profanatica

Country of Origin: United States

Genre: Black / Death metal

Type: EP

Format: CD

Length Approx.: 20:00 min.

Release Date: 11-02-2018

Release Label: Hells Headbangers Records

IR Classification: Good (4.0 / 5)

Listen to our review! (English)

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Pure and unadulterated evil.

I still remember my first encounter with the mighty entity of Profanatica one of my friends come to me holding in hands their first EP entitled "Weeping in Heaven" and one of my favorite albums split of all time "Tormenting the Flesh" Profanatica / "Ola de Violencia" Masacre (Colombia) released in 1991 and 1992 respectively, since I heard them the first time I was attracted by their profane and singular sound, which at that time I could only compare it with the band Blasphemy from Canada.

The first line-up was formed by former Incantation members Paul Ledney behind the drums and vocals, Brett Makowski on guitars, Aragon Amori on bass who unfortunately passed away in 1996 due to health conditions and John Gelso on guitars who used to play with Paul in another band called Abomination from New York. Despite those brilliant releases, the band split around 1992 and I never again heard from them, but fifteen years later I find myself with a great surprise, in a local shop I found their first album  titled "Profanatitas Domonatia" and I ended up buying it immediately, without any second thoughts I just wanted to have it and when I listened to it, I felt that same rush in my blood like I felt fifteen years ago, I was blown away for the rawness and intensity caught, the malignancy and disobedience portrayed in almost forty minutes.

So far they have released four demo-tapes, four full-length albums, three splits albums, a pair of compilations and five EP including the one we are about to talk about today, "Altar of the Virgin Whore", this extended play includes eight tracks that last approximately twenty minutes some tracks are extremely short and that might be one of the unconformities here, the first track "Conceived With Sin" comes in such form with aggressive riff and strong blast beats it sounds darker and evil while the vocals are overwhelming malignant, "Prayer in Eclipse" sounds very hunting and demoniac getting things in shape for a total possession, then comes the self-titled track "Altar of the Virgin Whore" starts off with a deep cavernous voice shouting loud the title track making a stunning delivery with ferocious drums and corrosive guitar riff, "Crucifixion Wounds" is damned for the nauseating guitar distortion, while the bass sounds filthy and grim as hell creating a just good enough atmosphere for the raw vocals, "Thorn King" is substantially short but loaded in a stench of hate, "Sacred Code Broken" rapidly takes you to the most unpleasant places with cutting razor-sharp guitar riff, to crush your soul with no remorse or whatsoever, the vocals are impressive and furious keeping the pace as pummeling the drums, "Fuck the Messiah" does a really good job retaining your attention taking a different approach without any over structured songwriting rather going into a more simplistic but profane and belligerent, the closing track is the instrumental "He Has Risen" where you can see them taking a sinister and doomy path were the malignancy prevails and rotting whatever comes to it forever.

To conclude "Altar of the Virgin Whore" it happens to be a good album full of a menacing guitar riff, infernal blast beat everywhere, pure and unadulterated evil, the rawness is crushing and captivating at the same time; However, the downside of this recording comes to be the length, it is to short and few tracks, in my opinion, need more attention to fully achieve the impact they should have.

Stay True… Stay Metal… Stay Brutal…™

Track List:

01. Conceived with Sin │ 02. Prayer in Eclipse │ 03. Altar of the Virgin Whore │ 04. Crucifixion Wounds │ 05. Thorn King │ 06. Sacred Code Broken │ 07. Fuck the Messiah │ 08. He has Risen

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