Pestis – Demo I 2023

Artist: Pestis Country: Canada Label: Self-Released Formats: Demo Tape Year: 2023 With a title like this, it is not hard to guess that we are dealing here with a first demo by a new band. Indeed, the Canadian Death Metal…

FesterDecay – Reality Rotten To The Core

Artist: FesterDecayCountry: JapanLabel: Everlasting Spew RecordsFormats: LP / Cassette tape / CDYear: 2023 The infamous ‘Gods Of Grind’ tour in 1992, featuring Confessor, Cathedral, Entombed and Carcass, turned out to be an event of great prophetic value. Not so much…

Lunatic Devote – Demonstration Of Lunatic Rituals [Demo]

Artist: Lunatic Devote Country: Greece Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital Demo Year: 2023 This Chicago, Illinois, USA based Death Metal outfit Lunatic Devote is presenting its first digital demo in the form of ‘Demonstration Of Lunatic Rituals’. Though it is very…

Agönphetish – Promo ’23

Artist: AgönphetishCountry: TurkeyLabel: Demo tapeYear: 2023 ‘Promo ‘23’ is the first offering of Agönphetish, a new band from Turkey of which its band member or members is (yet) unknown. Yet, this four-track demo tape, including an intro, gives quite a…

Grave Alter – Grave Alter [Demo]

Artist: Grave Alter Country: USA Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital Demo Year: 2023 What would fit better to a lovely Valentine’s Day then a piece of rotten and depraved Death Metal? Well? Yeah, I figured… Nothing! On the menu today is…

Scáth Na Déithe – Virulent Providence

Artist: Scáth Na DéitheCountry: IrelandLabel: Vendetta RecordsFormats: LP / Cassette tape / CDYear: 2023 Shadow of the Gods. That is a rough translation of the Irish text Scáth Na Déithe, which is also a band hailing from Rush (or An…

Sepulchromancy – Hell Crisis [Demo]

Artist: Sepulchromancy Country: Argentina Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital Demo Year: 2023 This anonymous Death/Thrash Metal band (or project) has recently released its very first offering, a five-track demo, or EP, if you will, with a total playing time of just…

Solothus – Summoned From The Void [Re-Release]

Artist: Solothus Country: Finland Label: Doomentia Records Formats: LP Year: 2023 The first time I heard the Finnish Death/Doom Metal band Solothus was with the 2013 Nihilistic Holocaust released reissue of the band’s sole demo, ‘Ritual Of The Horned Skull’,…

Masticated Cadaver – Necrotic Mutation [Demo]

Artist: Masticated Cadaver Country: Canada Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital Demo Year: 2023 When going through the preparation for the review for this first demo of Canadian based Death Metal act Masticated Cadaver I learned a few things. First of all…

Slug Gore – Extraterrestrial Gastropod Mollusc [EP]

Artist: Slug Gore Country: Italy Label: Self-Released Formats: Demo Tape/ CD Demo Year: 2023 The slug-themed EP/demo ‘Extraterrestrial Gastropod Mollusc’ of Italian based Death Metal/Grindcore combo Slug Gore, is the band’s first outing. And apparently, with all their sluggishness, they…

Depraver / Vrenth – Split LP

Artist: Depraver / VrenthCountry: USALabel: Seed Of DoomFormats: Split LPYear: 2022 This split release between two Californian Death Metal acts, Depraver and Vrenth, was originally released in 2021 on both cassette tape (Nero One Records) and CD (Cavernous Records) and…

Dehiscence – Colony [EP]

Artist: DehiscenceCountry: USALabel: Chaos Records / Pale Magus Productions / Seed of DoomFormats: Cassette EP / CD EPYear: 2023 Dehiscence is a new band comprised of musicians who prefer to be left anonymous, but, if certain sources are to be…

Mortem – Filicide [Re-Release]

Artist: Mortem Country: Russia Label: Coyote Records Formats: Cassette Tape / CD Year: 2023 In the wake of the re-release of Mortem’s first album, ‘Amputator’ (originally released in 1993), Coyote Records continues on its path, now also re-releasing 2000’s ‘Filicide’.…

Chasmdweller – Blood Vortex

Artist: ChasmdwellerCountry: CanadaLabel: Self-ReleasedFormats: Cassette tape / CDYear: 2023 The Death Metal duo known as Chasmdweller keep a pleasant pace of work. The Toronto, Canada-based band releases their first recording of the year with ‘Blood Vortex’, marking the latest chapter…

Eucharist – A Velvet Creation [Reissue]

Artist: EucharistCountry: SwedenLabel: Regain RecordsFormats: LP / Cassette tape / CDYear: 2022 Although the band made quite an impressive entry to the Swedish Death Metal scene with their demo tape from 1992, simply called ‘Demo 1’ and the ‘Greeting Immortality’…

Parasitario – Everything Belongs To Death

Artist: Parasitario Country: Japan Label: F.D.A. Records / Obliteration Records Formats: LP / CD Year: 2023 The Japanese Death Metal band Parasitario sounds anything but Japanese. Well, if there is a distinct Japanese sound to begin with, it certainly is…

Desolate Shrine – Fires Of The Dying World

Artist: Desolate ShrineCountry: FinlandLabel: Dark Descent RecordsFormats: LP / Cassette tape / CDYear: 2022 My first encounter with Desolate Shrine was with their second album, ‘The Sanctum Of Human Darkness’. The band’s dense Death Metal had such a dark and…

Azatoth – Ungodly Carnage [Demo]

Artist: AzatothCountry: FinlandLabel: The Other RecordsFormats: Demo tapeYear: 2023 The guys of Azatoth, a Finnish Death Metal band, returned with their recording in the summer of 2022. Their previous EP was covered on our VM-Underground pages already and was described…

Disguised Malignance – Unearthly Death [Demo]

Artist: Disguised MalignanceCountry: FinlandLabel: Self-ReleasedFormats: Digital demoYear: 2023 Disguised Malignance is a relatively new band from Helsinki, Finland. Some of the young band members have already been featured on our pages with a review for a demo of their other…

Frozen Blood – Revenge [Demo]

Artist: Frozen Blood Country: Chile Label: Adirondack Black Mass / Dry Cough Records / Excarnation Records Formats: 12″ LP / Demo tape / Demo CD Year: 2023 It might have taken a bit more time than initially expected, as the…

Death Breath – The Old Hag [EP]

Artist: Death BreathCountry: SwedenLabel: Electric Assault RecordsFormats: 7″ EPYear: 2022 When Death Breath first emerged with their eponymous 2006 released 7” EP, it marked the grand return of the ultimate Swedish Death Metal legend, Nicke Andersson, who, after leaving Entombed…

Conjureth – The Parasitic Chambers

Artist: ConjurethCountry: USALabel: Memento Mori Records / Rotted Life RecordsFormats: Cassette tape / CDYear: 2023 With this new full-length album the San Diego, Californaia, USA based Death Metal band Conjureth now have been able to deliver two EP’s and two…

Amputation – Slaughtered In The Arms Of God [Compilation]

Artist: AmpitationCountry: NorwayLabel: Nuclear War Now! ProductionsFormats: LP / Cassette tape / CDYear: 2020 The origins of all the well-known and genre-defining Norwegian Black Metal bands can be traced back to a small amount of extreme metal bands. Like basically…

Written In Blood – Written In Blood

Artist: Written In BloodCountry: The NetherlandsLabel: Trollzorn RecordsFormats: CDYear: 2022 Written In Blood is a new Dutch Death Metal band featuring ex-Vortex and ex-Mandator drummer Jos Eggens and, most prominently, ex-God Dethroned bassist Bert ‘Beef’ Hoving. When I first got…

Jade – The Pacification Of Death

Artist: Jade Country: Germany / Spain Label: Pulverised Records Formats: LP / CD Year: 2022 The German/Spanish Melodic Death Metal band released a demo in 2018 but went silent afterwards, it wasn’t until the very end of 2022 that the…

Hormagaunt – In The Flesh

Artist: Hormagaunt Country: Australia Label: Bitter Loss Records / Frozen Screams Imprint Formats: Cassette tape / CD Year: 2022 After an untitled demo from 2021, the Australian Death Metal combo Hormagaunt now returns with a full-length album. ‘In The Flesh’…

Static Abyss – Labyrinth Of Veins

Artist: Static Abyss Country: USA Label: Filth Junkies Records / Peaceville Records Formats: LP / Cassette Tape / CD Year: 2022 Autopsy has always been a band that spawned many a side-project, of which The Ravenous and Abscess might be…

Deiquisitor – Apotheosis

Artist: DeiquisitorCountry: DenmarkLabel: Extrmely Rotten ProductionsFormats: LP / Cassette / CDYear: 2023 Time flies, when you’re having fun. Right? ‘Apotheosis’ is already the fourth full-length album for Deiquisitor, one the flagships of the Danish thriving Death Metal scene. 2023 marks…

Skeletal Earth – Dreighphuck [EP / Re-Release]

Artist: Skeletal Earth Country: USA Label: VIC Records Formats: 7″ EP Year: 2022 Together with the reissue of the band’s two full-length albums, VIC Records also reissued Skeletal Earth’s 7” EP from 1993. The rather corny title, ‘Dreighphuck’, is quite…

Venefices – Incubacy [EP]

Artist: VeneficesCountry: PolandLabel: Nuclear War Now! ProductionsFormats: Vinyl EP / Cassette EPYear: 2023 The Polish war machine of Venefices was formed in 2019 by Desolator (member of Medico Peste and ex-Bestial Raids) on drums and Sadist (currently in Doombringer and…

Bones – Sombre Opulence

Artist: BonesCountry: BelgiumLabel: Invictus ProductionsFormats: LP / CDYear: 2022 Although the band has been around since 2010 and has already released several demos and EPs, Bones took plenty of time to come up with their debut album. Late last year…

Witchcraft – Sodomythic Temple [Demo]

Artist: WitchcraftCountry: FinlandLabel: Down With The Most HighFormats: Demo tapeYear: 2022 ‘Sodomythic Temple’ marks the third and last chapter of a series of demo/rehearsal tapes that Witchcraft released independently somewhere halfway last year and which were reissued by Down With…

Witchcraft – Ghastly Demonolatria [Demo]

Artist: WitchcraftCountry: FinlandLabel: Down With The Most HighFormats: Demo tapeYear: 2022 Out of a series of three reissues demo/rehearsal tapes of one of Finland’s best kept secrets, Witchcraft, comes this second tape: ‘Ghastly Demonolatria’. Which was, just like the other…

Strychnos – A Mother’s Curse

Artist: Strychnos Country: Denmark Label: Dark Descent Records Formats: LP / Cassette Tape / CD Year: 2022 Honestly, Danish Black/Death Metal band Strychnos never really did much to me with the bands’ early (and sparse) releases over the course of…

Witchcraft – Black Imprecation [Demo]

Artist: WitchcraftCountry: FinlandLabel: Down With The Most HighFormats: Demo tapeYear: 2022 Originally released in only a handful of copies and spread early on in 2022, this rehearsal demo is the first of three of such demos that were reissued by…

Abraded – Unadulterated Perversity

Artist: AbradedCountry: USALabel: Aggressively Uninterested Formats: Cassette tape / CDYear: 2023 American Death Metal/Grindcore combo Abraded returns with a new full-length album, after their eponymous debut from 2021. A debut that to me was a very welcome and refreshing listen,…

Galvanizer – Prying Sight Of Imperception

Artist: GalvanizerCountry: FinlandLabel: Everlasting Spew Records / Extremely Rotten Productions / Headsplit Records / Me Saco un Ojo RecordsFormats: LP / Cassette tape / CDYear: 2021 Oh dear, this album has been gathering dust in our promo closet for far…

Fleshrot – Unburied Corpse

Artist: Fleshrot Country: USA Label: Desert Wastelands Productions / Me Saco Un Ojo Formats: LP / Cassette tape / CD Year: 2022 After the band’s eponymous 2020 demo, the Texas Death Metal band Fleshrot returns for their debut album. Those…

Harvest Gulgaltha – Ancient Woods

Artist: Harvest Gulgaltha Country: USA Label: Godz Ov War Productions Formats: Cassette tape / CD Year: 2022 The anonymous American trio that is Harvest Gulgaltha returns with their sophomore effort, five years after their debut. The enigmatic Black/Death Metal combo…

Cryptopsy – Ungentle Exhumation [Demo / Re-Release]

Artist: CryptopsyCountry: CanadaLabel: Xtreem RecordsFormats: 10″ EP / CD EPYear: 2021 ‘Ungentle Exhumation’ is undoubtedly one of the most important demos from the Canadian metal scene. It marked the start not only of Cryptopsy, but actually of a whole tradition…

Fleshcrawl – Festering Flesh [Demo / Reissue]

Artist: Fleshcrawl Country: Germany Label: Xtreem Music Formats: 10″ EP / CD EP Year: 2021 Before the band would become known as Fleshcrawl, one of Germany’s best and longest-running Death Metal bands, they were known as Morgöth and subsequently Suffocation.…

Autopsy – Morbidity Triumphant

Artist: AutopsyCountry: USALabel: Peaceville RecordsFormats: LP / Cassette tape / CDYear: 2022 Introducing Autopsy to a VM-Underground reader is like explaining Star Wars to a sci-fi enthusiast. Useless, then, so we won’t do that. There is, however, no denying of…

Autophagy – Bacteriophage

Artist: AutophagyCountry: USALabel: Necrolatry Records / Pulverised RecordsFormats: LP / Cassette tape / CDYear: 2023 In 2018 the American Death Metal band Autophagy delivered a nice demo that our chief editor Ricardo here at VM-Underground described as a good blend…