Tales From The Underground
Tales From The Underground
Artist: Drowning The Light Country: Australia Label: Dark Adversary Productions Formats: CD Year: 2024 The last couple of years saw a lot of Drowning The Light’s back catalogue resurface in the form of some well-deserved reissues, mostly through Azgorh’s very…
Artist: MoonstruckCountry: FinlandLabel: Signal RexFormats: Demo tapeYear: 2024 As if delivering one of the best Finnish Black Metal records of 2024 wasn’t enough, Kratti vocalist Haarniska returns once more in the entity Moonstruck. A different band in which the stage…
I was pointed out by my The Whispering Darkness companion on a demo I should check out, it was also available on cassette tape, but only in 13 copies. In other words: hurry up or you’ll be too late. Fortunately,…
Artist: Bok Country: The Netherlands Label: Self-Released Formats: Demo tape Year: 2024 Although the musician behind this new Dutch Black Metal band gained his experience in bands like Göll and Experimentum, with Bok he takes all the reins in his…
Artist: Ieschure Country: Ukraine Label: Those Opposed Records Formats: LP / Cassette Tape / CD Year: 2024 Although the band has released a good amount of EP’s and splits over the past years, ‘When The Darkness Comes’ is only Iechure’s…
Artist: Necrohammer Country: Mexico Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital Demo Year: 2024 Two years ago I stumbled upon this Mexican band playing a vintage sort of Black/Speed Metal that was inspired by all things old and extreme: Venom, Hellhammer, Sodom, Sarcófago…
Artist: Sadistic Goatmessiah Country: Germany Label: Self-Released Formats: Demo Tape Year: 2024 As the title already suggests, this demo was actually the demo the band presented last year. That first version was recorded and released in October of 2023 and…
Funeral Storm’s second album, ‘Chthonic Invocations’ is another triumphant display of the Greek Black Metal sound, delving deep into the mystique of that distinctly recognizable atmosphere with its sinister and incantatory melodies and rhythms. This way the band is, slowly…
Artist: ElementalCountry: FinlandLabel: Final Agony RecordsFormats: 12″ LPYear: 2024 If you though that Kêres plays bareboned and primitive Black Metal, let me introduce Elemental to you. Atvar, the main man behind not only Kêres but also Circle of Ouroborus, Rahu…
Although Korpituli had already put out some good quality releases, it was with the recently released ‘Pohjola’ that things got really interesting. Whereas the first two albums consisted of fairly well-executed, but perhaps a bit on the safe side Melodic…
Artist: Hellgate Necrosodomy Country: Finland Label: Unpure Records Formats: CD Year: 2024 Just add it all up: the band name, the Finnish origin, the album’s artwork and the fact that this record is released by Unpure Records… For the seasoned…
Artist: Ancient Necromancy Country: USA Label: Dark Adversary Productions Formats: CD Year: 2024 Ancient Necromancy, a one-man Black Metal band spawned out of the mind of Eldrinacht, also responsible for such acts as Cult of Thaumiel and Gharmelicht, released one…
Artist: Kiloton Country: Canada Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital EP Year: 2024 ‘Heart’ is the third Kiloton EP that was released in a series of four that further expands the audial onslaught that was set in with last year’s trio of…
Artist: Kiloton Country: Canada Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital EP Year: 2024 Because ‘Gears’ is the second Kiloton EP in an impressively short time, I would almost suggest to read the review of the first EP ‘War’ too to at least…
Artist: Kiloton Country: Canada Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital EP Year: 2024 With no less than four EP’s in about two months, one-man force Kiloton, hailing from the Quebec-region of Canada, is following up its death march as started back in…
Artist: Heresiarch Country: New Zealand Label: Iron Bonehead Productions Formats: LP / CD Year: 2024 From the very start, in the form of the first ‘Hammer Of Intransigence’ 12” EP from 2011 and its follow-up in the form of ‘Wælwulf’,…
Artist: Black Ceremonial Kult / Shambles Country: Chile / Thailand Label: Godz Ov War Productions Formats: Split 7″ EP Year: 2024 In the latest batch of Godz Ov War Productions’ releases there are four 7” EP’s, a format I am…
Although only formed fairly recently, in 2016 to be precise, Deathwalker, the sole being behind Nihil Invocation has not exactly been sitting still. The band’s discography is impressive not only on volume, but mainly because of its down-to-earth and raw…
Artist: Nocturnal Deviancy Country: USA Label: Dark Adversary Productions Formats: CD EP Year: 2024 Together with a digital split with Chasmic Filth that appeared just a month prior this Dark Adversary Productions released EP, these are the first recordings from…
Artist: Nihil Invocation Country: USA Label: Northern Void Records Formats: LP Year: 2024 The ever-restless and hardworking Deathwalker returns with his sixth full-length album with Nihil Invocation, not all too long after the 2-track demo from February this same year.…
The Extreme Metal maniacs of Witchfukker are set to unleash their debut album ‘Tapestry of Unspeakable Horrors’ through De Pankraker Records and Destruktion Records. Fed by the aesthetics and primitive force of the 80’s and early 90’s, their mix of…
Artist: Prehistoric War Cult Country: Germany Label: Fucking Kill Records / Iconoclasm Conquest / Kellerassel Records Formats: LP / Cassette Tape / CD Year: 2024 With a good couple of short players in the past few years the German Black/Death…
Artist: Vömitt Country: Romania Label: Self-Releasaed Formats: Digital EP Year: 2024 Sometimes not much words are needed to get to the core of something. This new EP from Romanian Vömitt for instance, the band name, logo and EP title do…
Artist: Alkemisti Country: Finland Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital Demo Year: 2024 ‘Ajan Ja Tilan Rajamailla’ is the debut recording for a this new Finnish Black Metal band. Loosely translated, the title in Finnish means something like “At The Frontiers Of…
Artist: NightsideCountry: FinlandLabel: Purity Through FireFormats: LP / CDYear: 2024 Last year Nightside returned with the demo ‘Lions’, their first release in 22 years. A glorious return, as the Finnish Black Metal outfit combined an excellent sense of fast-paced Swedish…
Artist: ACODCountry: FranceLabel: Hammerheart RecordsFormats: LP / CD Year: 2024 A mix of Swedish melodic Death Metal with atmospheric Black Metal into something that could be described as a much heavier and more Black Metal version of more modern Dark Tranquillity, that’s how…
Artist: Hate Forest Country: Ukraine Label: Osmose Productions Formats: 12″ EP / CD EP Year: 2024 As a youngster getting into Black Metal around the turn of the millennium I was extremely impressed by Hate Forest’s debut album, ‘The Most…
Artist: Smyrtonos Country: Bulgaria Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital Year: 2024 Back in 2022 I reviewed Smyrtonos’ last recordings, as Todorac had carried this project to its grave. Yet, that seemingly was for a short period only as last year the…
Artist: Primitive Warfare Country: USA Label: Godz Ov War Productions / Stygian Black Hand Formats: LP / CD Year: 2024 After a demo and two splits (with Complot! and Bog Body) the duo that is behind Primitive Warfare thought it…
Of course, you can’t keep track of everything, even if you try hard. For instance, out of nowhere I was surprised and completely blown over by ‘Hohenbaden’ by Markgraf, a German band that ingeniously manages to mix unorthodox Black Metal…
Artist: Ancient Guard Country: Australia Label: Iron Bonehead Productions Formats: 12″ EP / CD EP Year: 2024 While ‘Nightfall Enthroned’ might be the debut EP by a new band, the sole member behind Ancient Guard is everything but a rookie.…
Artist: Sabbat Country: Japan Label: Evil Horn Records / Iron Pegasus Records / Nuclear War Now! Productions / Old Library Records Formats: LP / Cassette Tape / CD Year: 2024 As one of the stalwarts of the First Wave of…
The Dutch Heidens Hart Records simultaneously released two strong Pagan Black Metal albums earlier this year, ‘Tir Nan Og’ being one of them: the latest album by the one-man band Drunemeton, originally from Russia. Although the album is overtly based…
Artist: IätönCountry: FinlandLabel: Korpituli ProductionsFormats: Demo tapeYear: 2024 Following the release of their first demo ‘Loitsutulet’ I lauded the Finns in Iätön for delivering harsh and haunting Black Metal in the vein of Barathrum and Korgonthurus mixed with a dash of…
Artist: Profanation Country: France Label: Iron Bonehead Productions Formats: 12″ EP / CD EP Year: 2024 Profanation is a band that sprung from the minds of a number of French musicians who had previously earned their stripes in bands such…
Artist: Messe De Minuit Country: Spain Label: Iron Bonehead Productions Formats: Demo Tape Year: 2024 Born from the spirits of the trinity of Eosforos, Crucifier and Lucifogo, they collectively lay their first feat on the table: ‘Invocation’. A 1-track demo…
Artist: Necromoon Country: Poland Label: Putrid Cult Formats: CD Year: 2024 From the Putrid Cult stables comes this new anonymous Polish act called Necromoon. With no other information available than this, we should just start focussing on the music of…
Artist: Blaze Of Perdition Country: Poland Label: Metal Blade Records Formats: LP / CD Year: 2024 With roots dating as far back as 2004, Blaze Of Perdition can rightfully be called one of the main acts in the Polish Black…
Artist: Adversarial Country: Canada Label: Dark Descent Records Formats: LP / Cassette Tape / CD Year: 2024 Admittedly, after the band’s first few releases I kind of lost track of Adversarial. In the early 10’s I did pick up the…
Artist: Hellbutcher Country: Sweden Label: Metal Blade Records Formats: LP / CD Year: 2024 While Nifelheim’s official status is unclear, it is most likely that the band died a slow death in the past decade. With only the occasional sign…
Artist: Witchflame Country: Finland Label: Werewolf Records Formats: CD Year: 2023 Being released on the 12th of December of 2023, ‘Omen’, the debut album of Finnish Black Metal band Witchflame is not quite the latest of releases from the Werewolf…
Artist: Black Cilice Country: Portugal Label: Iron Bonehead Productions Formats: 12″ EP / CD EP Year: 2024 Founded back somewhere at the end of the 00’s, Black Cilice’s rise to fame (for Black Metal standard at least) came after the…
Everyone of a certain age who reads this has some kind of starting point somewhere, a few months in his or her life that determined the development of musical taste and perspective on the cultural phenomenon of “Extreme Metal”. Mine…
Artist: OerheksCountry: BelgiumLabel: Amor Fati ProductionsFormats: 10″ DemoYear: 2024 In many ways, this review for the fourth demo of Oerheks has been a while coming. Mastermind H. had already mentioned last year that he had recorded five demos for this…
Although the band itself does not like to be categorised very much by their origins, their Kyrgyz ancestry does play a big role in the way Darkestrah shapes their music. Not only in the music itself does their Central Asian…
Artist: WitchfukkerCountry: The NetherlandsLabel: De Pankraker Records / Destruktion RecordsFormats: LP / Cassette tapeYear: 2024 Off the back of the excellent ‘Deathaemorrhage’ demo, Witchfukker returns with the first full-length of the band’s career. On ‘Tapestry of Unspeakable Horrors’, they look…
Artist: Vomit Messiah Country: Spain Label: In Pulverem Mortis Productions Formats: Demo Tape Year: 2024 Last autumn, Spain’s Vomit Messiah had already caught my attention with their self-titled demo tape that was brimming with unbridled savage barbarism. Deliciously unoriginal and…
Artist: Sotherion Country: France Label: W.T.C. Productions Formats: LP / CD Year: 2024 With the 2022 released two-track ‘Schwarmgeist’-demo we already had a bit of a sneak peak into what we could expect from Sotherion, a Paris, France based one-man band founded by BST.…
Artist: NachtheemCountry: The NetherlandsLabel: Self-releasedFormats: Digital EPYear: 2024 Nachtheem is a mysterious new entity hailing from The Netherlands that released their debut EP ‘Nacht, Zij met Ons…’ at the dawn of 2024. While that release initially passed me by unnoticed,…
Artist: They Came From Visions Country: Ukraine Label: Eisenwald Formats: CD Year: 2024 Drudkh’s immense influence on contemporary Black Metal is beyond any dispute, echoes of its elongated riffs based on the grandeur of nature can be heard in more…