Review: Morbid Insulter - Funeral Mysticism

Funeral Mysticism is a compilation CD released by I Hate Records on the 9th of December, 2012.

The compilation features two demo tapes and two MLPs. It also features two previously unreleased songs.

Morbid Insulter were in my opinion one of the best Swedish extreme metal bands ever, the riffs, the song structures and the lyrics are all insanely good. Morbid Insulter were mainly influenced by bands like Master's Hammer, Sarcofago, Bestial Warlust and Nifelheim. 

CD 1 starts with a haunting instrumental intro, Awakening The Spirits Of Evil. Not much to say about intros other than the fact that they provide a premonition for the record. The next track is Deathfuck Bizarre, a furious assault upon the ears and senses of the living. This CD is full of fast and mean riffs, the production is however somewhat varied due to the sources. Other standout tracks include Fornications In Paradise, Order Of Unholy Violence and Wrath From Hades. I have no wish to spoil the glorious first listen of this album and I will therefore keep it rather short this time. 

The cover. 

CD 2 is my favorite of the two. It feels as if the band underwent a huge transformation between the two discs, and this is in my opinion the superior one. The tracks on CD 2 are collected from Thundering Evil and Antichrist Blasphemies, the two MLPs. Other than the obvious difference in quality there is also a feeling of above stated superiority. The riffing and structures of the songs have evolved, most notably on Antichrist Blasphemies. The most notable songs on the first half of this CD would be Abominations Curse, Breaking The Cross and Take Me To Hell. 

The last four songs on CD 2 really stands out from the rest. The riffs are all great and this part is some form of controlled chaos. The structures are really amazing to boot! The track Antichrist Blasphemies is in my opinion the most furious and insane death metal song I have ever had the privilege to listen to.

This record is for those that appreciate bands like Nifelheim, Sarcofago and Anal Vomit. 

My verdict: 4/5 

Link: http://www.ihate.se/

DÖD ÅT ALLT

Review: Bombangrepp - Skuggan Av Dödens Sändebud

This blog just lost its crust virginity. I am actually reviewing crust punk for the first time in my life, shit yeah!

So this is Bombangrepp and they hail from Trollhättan and Göteborg, Sweden, and that means local lads. The first thing I did was to search for some information about the band and I found out that they are a four-piece band and that this demo was recorded by Fred Forsberg at Forsberg Musikproduktion in the second half of 2011 and released shortly thereafter. I also found out that the logo and artwork on the demo cover is made by the drummer, which is refreshing due to the fact that I resent covers made in photoshop!  

Let's get started.

The first track is called Livets Refräng and it begins with a slow intro that evolves into some pounding d-beat destruction. So far I actually enjoy the verse riff and the drums, but the vocals are really not my type of vocals. Except for the vocals this is a pretty sweet track, with a fast guitar/bass and wrecking drums. The next track is Ännu En Syndabock and it starts pretty furiously, vocals are a bit better, but I have to say the drums sound pretty weak. 

Handmade cover, that's the spirit! 

The third track Det Sista Sveket is actually the longest track on the demo and it's another assault but with a slow intro. Followed by Det Sista Sveket we have Den Inre Striden which is my favorite track on this demo. It's short, fast and pissed. Moving on we arrive at the fifth track, Med Livet Som Insats. This track is just another mad onslaught. Following Med Livet Som Insats we have the title track, Skuggan Av Dödens Sändebud. I guess this track is about war or something crust-ish like that, the singer performs better on this track. Moving on we have Autonoma Frizoner and this pretty much continues in the same way the previous tracks did. The eighth track is Inget Hopp - Ingen Framtid and I guess this track is about living a miserable life. It's fast and short. The last two tracks are Artförtryck and Basic Needs. They go on in the same tempo as the earlier songs, sweet.


To sum it all up: Crust demo. Short songs played in a fast tempo. I'd love to see longer songs and less straightforward velocity for the next demo.


My verdict: 2/5

Review: Altar of Pain - Severe Scourge

Okay so I got an email from a member of Altar of Pain and he asked me to do a review for their new EP, said and done. Altar of Pain is a death metal band from Madeira island, Portugal. The band was formed in the summer of 2010 and they are according to their Facebook page influenced by bands like Death, Belphegor, Deicide and Cannibal Corpse. So far they have released some EPs, demos etc. I will however only review the most recent EP, Severe Scourge. They released Severe Scourge on a site called Bandcamp and I will forward you to the actual page at the end of the review.The production and the drums are the things that bother me the most. It feels like they have programmed the drums in some program or something, because they sound exactly the same throughout the entire EP. The guitars sound very mild and tame compared to what you get when recording properly, so I have my suspicions that these guys recorded and produced this EP at home with the help of a computer. The lyrics are mostly about gore and diseases, which is pretty cool! The tracks vary in length and the shortest is three and a half minutes long while the longest track is just over five minutes long. As a more positive note I bet the riffs are really technical or something, so fans of technical music or stuff like that might enjoy it.

Logo. 

The first track on this seven song EP is Death By Exsanguination and it starts with a bang right away, and that is always appreciated. What isn't just as appreciated is the drums, and especially not the double bass drums that have this clickety-click sound. Yuck. The riffs are pretty cool though and I like the riff in the intro and the one in the verse, but I really dislike the one in the chorus. The song is built around the basic intro-verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-solo-verse-chorus-outro/end method and it is a very common practice within this kind of music. Had I liked the riff in the chorus and the drums I might have enjoyed this piece, but I don't and we move on to the next track. And the next track is Fatal Disease and it starts pretty much like the previous song with uptempo riffing and some more boring double bass drumming. This intro doesn't appeal to me at all and I don't get that excited over the verse either... The chorus isn't as fast as the verse and the double bass drums are starting to hammer on my patience. Next!
The third song is The Fleshless Goddess and I get fed up early this time, because those clicking double bass drum appear right from the start. What annoys me even more is that the second riff follows the bass drums in the strumming. I have to say that the vocals are decent though, although generic they are still decent.

I bet this cover was made in Photoshop. 

It's time for the fourth track, Infected. The first ten seconds before the double bass drums kick in are pretty damn good, but I can't really say that they are enough to make me enjoy this song at all. 

Following Infected we have Organic Pathogen and this song is about some plague or something. We are yet again presented by those detestable drums and I can barely listen to it anymore because the clicking is just so damn annoying. Clickety-fucking-click! Organic Pathogen is the second longest track on this digital EP and I can't really point out anything specific anymore because the riffs and the beats are all too generic. Following Organic Pathogen we have Scriptorium and it starts with a slow intro without the double bass drums, which is like some kind of blessing by now. The drum fills here are pretty neat, and I can actually listen to the double bass drums this time because they are a bit slower and that means that the clicking isn't as annoying. The vocals are just as decent as before but the riffs are more listenable! This song is easily the second best on the EP and I have regained my patience and my focus. The solo is pretty sweet although it is cheezy as fuck in the beginning and followed by a two-track solo where one guitar does some tremolo sling and the other is tapping. Onward to the final track! The final track is Void Dimension and it is an instrumental song. Sadly it starts with the double bass drums yet again. It feels like they are mixed lower though, because the clicking isn't as obvious in the beginning. But it is still there. We are then offered some blast beats mixed with some more double bass drumming. But the next part is a slower part and it is actually pretty good, the riff is good, the drums aren't as obvious and that is about it. Following the slower session we get an even slower part that is sadly overthrown by more double bass drums. The riff here is pretty boring and it sounds like some band from that shitty wave of metal that came a while back. The EP fades out with this riff and that is about it, my friends. 

I am not a big fan of music that is made at home in a basement with computer drums or music that sounds like it. Therefore I can very well say that this EP isn't for me. These guys should try to get some time in a studio and re-record this and release it properly, I'm sure some people would appreciate it.

This EP is for fans of: Mephorash

My verdict: 2/5

Review: Bastard Priest - Ghouls of the Endless Night

So my first post here is dedicated to Bastard Priest.

Hailing from somewhere in fucking Sweden we have this monstrosity of a band. Bastard Priest consists of Matt Mendoza on bombs of mayhem/rabid screams of the mutilated dead and Inventor on six and four string chains/unholy cries of doom. The songs have apparently been recorded in Malmö in November 2010 with a few finishing lead works and vocals in 2011 at Welcome To Hell Mobile Studio. The production on this record is very raw and uncompromising, it is also pretty dirty. The guitars are distorted to hell and it sounds like the bass is both mildly and heavily distorted at times, but what the fuck do I know about basses? It is also great that they have this raw and sick distortion without sacrificing the vocals or the drums, that is indeed a feat! And concerning the drums, I love them! Matt Mendoza mostly varies between two beats on this record, but he does it really well with a lot of energy and power. These drums are really powerful. It feels like Bastard Priest have been influenced by hardcore bands like Anti Cimex, Discharge, Disfear, Bombanfall etc. and early death metal. The combination of these influences really creates something special. This is Bastard Priests' second record, released by Blood Harvest. And I must say they did an even better job this time.

Bastard Priest.

The mayhem kicks off with Pestilent Force, a great pounding wrecking ball that mows down everything weak and unfilthy. This song is pretty fast and it begins with a buzzing guitar riff and is accompanied by a steady beat on the drums and a fierce solo. About two minutes into the song there is a break, a sample is played and then the first riff is making its second comeback, this time it is followed by a lashing solo. The song clocks in at almost 4 minutes and it ends with a horrid grunt from hell. Pestilent Force is followed by Ghouls of the Endless Night, the title track and the pounding just  keeps wrecking my face and melting my brain. The song starts with a relentless intro in midtempo with a crushing riff and another solo, after about half a minute they turn up the tempo and unleash a furious onslaught complete with some good old D-beat. I really love the energy that this band display! This song is one of the longest ones on the record but that doesn't bother me at all, since they keep punching me in the face. Ghouls of the Endless Night is followed by the third track, Enter Eternal Nightmare, and the merciless gutting is ongoing. Damn this is some unpure death metal and totally uncompromising havoc. Enter Eternal Nightmare begins with a rolling beat and a few heavy chords. The lead guitar soon kicks in and does its job. This song is pretty slow in the beginning but the tempo is soon enough raised and we are drawn into the verse followed by the chorus. Enter Eternal Nightmare ends after about four and a half minute. The A-side ends with Poison, which is a slow and grinding onslaught that signals the end of life itself and also the A-side. This is the slowest song on the entire record, but it doesn't disturb me at all. The lyrics are puked out in a vile growl while the drums keep a steady and powerful beat and the bass and the guitars lay a carpet of violent terror upon the listener, especially after about two and a half minutes.

A mean and gritty logo. To me it combines elements of classical acts like Entombed and Shitlickers. 

Time for the B-side.

This side begins with Sacrilegious Ground, and it is just as powerful as any track on the A-side. The guitars sound like buzzing chainsaws that rape the fuckin' universe. The universally raping guitars are present on the entire record by the way. After the slow and monumental ending on the A-side we welcome this song, because it is another fast and merciless track. This song is one of the three songs on the album that clocks in over five minutes. The tempo is raised and kept throughout most of the song, as the guitars buzz their way onward while Matt Mendoza performs some filthy vocals. My favorite part of this piece is the second half. First we are served a ripping bridge with lead details, we are then enthralled by a hypnotizing beat from Matt and then utterly blown apart by the final solo. Fuckin' A.
Followed by Sacrilegious Ground we have Fucking Slaughter and it starts of with a sample of someone smashing a weak-ass poser face with a bottle, proper enough. The first thing that comes to my mind when I hear the first riff in this song is hardcore. The riff sounds very much alike the riffs used by Swedish hardcore bands in the 80's and 90's and it is followed by d-beat. I wonder if Matt and Inventor listen to Anti Cimex or Wolfpack. After about two and a half minutes we are served a short break with a great riff, this break is soon smashed and followed by more madness, I love it. Fucking Slaughter is just over four minutes long and these are some damn good four minutes.

Dressed for war. 

After Fucking Slaughter we are totally ravaged by Last Scream, another great and destroying hit. Last Scream starts with a menacing riff and some badass fills on the drums. This is followed by a really good solo that brings us into the verse where the vocals begin. This song is about someone getting eaten alive and it is a pure annihilation in mid tempo. If I had to chose a favorite song on this record, Last Scream would be the one. Last Scream is the shortest song on the album and it is just over three and a half minutes long. Some two minutes into the song we are served the second solo, and Inventor really shines here.

We arrive at the end of the record and the total end is presented by Enormous Thunder of the End. I could not have asked for a better ending to this brutal assault of a record. It starts with a slow intro where the rhythm guitar and the bass strum a few chords. The drums are exploding in the background and the lead guitar is doing what it does best. After about half a minute the lead guitar plays another intro solo while the drums have found a steady beat. About one minute into the song all hell breaks lose and we are served with an excellent riff from the string department and the drums are mowing down everything that stand in the way of the mighty war machine that is Bastard Priest. Matt Mendoza is vomiting pure sickness upon the listener and it is hard to resist both headbanging and flexing the hardcore fist while listening to this piece. This track is the monumental ending that completes the reeking plague that is the Ghouls of the Endless Night.

I am very satisfied with my own copy of this record. 

To sum it all up, this is truly a great record filled with gut-smashing death metal. You should get yourself a copy of this jewel. I have no idea whether it is sold out or anything, but head over to Blood Harvest and check it out.

This record is for anyone that appreciates either Discharge or Death.

My verdict: 5/5 




LINKS: 
Bastard Priest - http://www.myspace.com/bastardpriestsweden and http://bastardpriest.com/
Blood Harvest - http://www.bloodharvest.se/