Tales From The Underground
Tales From The Underground
Artist: Wampyric Rites Country: Ecuador Label: Signal Rex Formats: 12” EP / Cassette EP / CD EP Year: 2023 Although the band was only formed in 2019, Ecuadorian Wampyric Rites is one of the most eye-catching bands from the thriving…
Artist: Shithammered Country: USA Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital EP Year: 2023 Despite the fact that the Chris Moyen-like black/red-with-goat cover might make you expect a serving of Ross Bay Cult Bestial Black/Death Metal, the music of this American duo is…
Artist: Black Edifice Country: Norway Label: Iron Bonehead Productions Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 When I first read the name of this new Norwegian band, my thoughts immediately went to Dream Death, this American cult band has a song of…
Artist: Deathwinds Country: Canada Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital EP Year: 2023 No less than nine years after the band’s last release, Deathwinds returns with a new EP, ‘Ripping Annihilation’. And yes, they have chosen this title very appropriately, this Canadian…
Artist: Drowning The Light Country: Australia Label: Dark Adversary Productions Formats: CD EP Year: 2023 Hot on the heels on the in August released two EP’s, Australia’s most prolific Black Metal band, Drowning The Light, returns with a yet another…
Artist: Wolves In The Throne Room Country: USA Label: Relapse Records / Century Media Formats: 12″ EP / CD EP Year: 2023 As with many bands that are dealt with a certain hype in their careers this phenomenon comes with…
Artist: ÜbelkeitCountry: ChileLabel: Self-releasedFormats: Digital EPYear: 2023 A German word for a band name that translates to Nausea: you are forgiven if you didn’t guess that the entity behind the name Übelkeit hails from Chile and plays dissonant Black Metal. …
Artist: Tenebro Country: Italy Label: Seven Metal Inches Records Formats: 7″ EP Year: 2023 To celebrate the band’s first ever live appearance on this year’s edition of the NRW Deathfest in Germany, Tenebro joined forces (again) with Seven Metal Inches…
Artist: Rapid Country: Finland Label: Dying Victims Productions Formats: 12″ EP / Cassette EP / CD EP Year: 2023 Finnish Speed Metal combo Rapid came to my attention through their 2017 released 7” single (Svart Records) that my partner in…
Artist: Necrogore Country: Italy Label: Wrong Disk Records Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 Necrogore from Italy is a new band on the block of its country’s Death Metal scene, but while the band might be a new acquisition to the…
Artist: Drowning The Light Country: Australia Label: Dark Adversary Productions Formats: CD EP Year: 2023 Both this new EP and the ‘Violet Mercury & Moonlit Sorcery’ EP were released at the very same time, clock in around 20 minutes each…
Artist: Drowning The Light Country: Australia Label: Dark Adversary Productions Formats: CD EP Year: 2023 The Australian band never lets its loyal following wait long for a sign of life, earlier this year Azgorh already brought us two EP’s, a…
Artist: Bloody Run Country: USA Label: Self-Released Formats: CD EP Year: 2023 Earlier this year the trio that is Bloody Run, hailing from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, presented their third release. ‘The Revenge’ is an (extremely) short affair, clocking in at…
Artist: Death Worship Country: Canada Label: Nuclear War Now! Productions Formats: 12″ EP / CD Year: 2023 Not including a demo and a promotional tape, this is EP number three from Canada’s Death Worship (which seems to be headquartered in…
Artist: Tempest Country: Mexico Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital EP Year: 2023 Under the moniker Tempest, this trio, admittedly with modest experience in extreme metal, puts out a thoroughly enjoyable first EP. ‘Unending Torment’, a self-released 4-tracker with a total length…
Artist: Triclavian Country: Canada Label: Serpents Head Reprisal Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 While this trio from Canada may be a somewhat arcane entity, with all three members appearing only by their initials, the fact that this demo (or EP,…
Artist: Avulsed Country: Spain Label: Xtreem Music Formats: 10″ EP / CD EP Year: 2023 One of Spain’s longest running bands is back with this new two-track EP, which is actually the first new material since the 2017 released split…
Artist: Beenkerver Country: The Netherlands Label: Vendetta Records Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 Last year we could already enjoy the by no means insignificant ‘Ontaard’, the debut album of this new musical project by Niels “Beenkerver” Riethorst, who we previously…
Artist: Gravavgrav / Bastard Grave Country: Japan / Sweden Label: Behind The Mountain Formats: Split 7″ EP Year: 2023 As a fan of the split 7″ EP format for its (often) musical variety and the 7″ EP in general, it…
Artist: Dismorfia Country: Peru Label: Gurgling Gore Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 Barbarity from Peru, that’s not exactly new of course. It may not be the purveyor of extreme metal from South American countries, but the country has certainly made…
Artist: Wyvern Country: The Netherlands Label: Heidens Hart Records Formats: CD EP Year: 2023 After the two demo tapes from 2019 and 2020, both of which saw the light of day via Tour de Garde and Zwartkunst Smederij, the mysterious…
Artist: Weregoat Country: USA Label: Iron Bonehead Productions Formats: 7″ EP Year: 2023 Ahh, Weregoat. The ever-cheerful trio that has been ostentatiously hitting the road since the late 00s is making themselves heard again. Although their previous (and only) full-length…
Artist: Worm Altar Country: USA Label: Gurgling Gore Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 Last year, one-man formation Worm Altar already delivered a very attractive piece of Doom/Death Metal with a self-titled demo. Although that particular genre has been troubled by…
Artist: Moonlight Sorcery Country: Finland Label: Avantgarde Music Formats: 7″ EP Year: 2023 Admittedly, I felt a little let down by Moonlight Sorcery’s second EP, ‘Nightwind: The Conqueror From The Stars’ from December 2022. Although having largely the same ingredients…
Artist: Mournful Congregation Country: Australia Label: Osmose Productions / 20 Buck Spin Formats: LP / Cassette tape / CD Year: 2023 We live in a time where everything happens so fast, where all contacts seem fleeting and there seems to…
Artist: ManiakCountry: SwedenLabel: Self-ReleasedFormats: Digital EPYear: 2023 Maniak, not to be confused with the Filipino band of the same name (and even a somewhat similar logo), releases their debut EP with ‘Speed Metal Terrorist’, a more than fitting follow-up to…
Artist: UdrękaCountry: PolandLabel: Self-ReleasedFormats: Digital EPYear: 2023 ‘Zgnij’ introduces us to Udręka, presenting the first 17 minutes of recorded material of the group from Kielce, Poland. During the three songs of the EP, we get a fairly good idea what…
Artist: VerhindererCountry: GermanyLabel: Self-ReleasedFormats: Digital EPYear: 2023 Bettler, the sole member behind this new Black Metal project from Germany, is not only really honest about his musical achievements but very humble too. Maybe not quite self-effacing, but well, blessed are…
Artist: Dying RemainsCountry: CanadaLabel: Maggot StompFormats: Cassette EPYear: 2023 Although I couldn’t relate much to the positive vibe that was created around Detherous, the Canadian Death/Thrash Metal band, and found their album quite a bit of an underwhelming affair, everything…
Artist: Svraoz Country: Indonesia Label: Delusive Records Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 From Indonesia comes this new Black/Thrash Metal band Svraoz and with ‘Sacraments Of Evil’ they do present their first recordings, a 7-track EP, clocking in at just under…
Artist: Leather Brigade Country: Romania Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital EP Year: 2023 From Romania comes this four-piece that are releasing their 5-track debut EP ‘Pray To The Knife’. I think that a quick look at both the band name/EP title…
Artist: Sanguine Relic Country: USA Label: GoatowaRex / Perverse Homage Formats: 7″ EP / Cassette EP Year: 2023 A few years back, Sanguine Relic became, whether intended or not, one of the faces of the resurgence of the (ultimate) crude…
Artist: Surgical Invasion Country: Ukraine Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital EP Year: 2023 This Ukrainian Thrash Metal duo makes no secret of their inspiration. The band name and the cover with this EP give it all away, the whole medicine cabinet…
Artist: Schizophrenia Country: Belgium Label: Self-Released Formats: CD EP Year: 2023 Okay, admittedly. I have always kept some distance from this band. I always thought the name was terribly badly chosen. When you choose to name your Thrash Metal band…
Artist: Slakter Country: Indonesia Label: Delusive Records Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 Okay, admittedly, the name of this EP is a bit cheesy and rather simplistic. But then again, it is the first EP from this Indonesian band and despite…
Artist: Speedpussy Country: USA Label: Self-Released Formats: Digital EP Year: 2023 With a band name like this and such an old school cover, it was a no brainer to click play. And, yes, of course I simply got what I…
Artist: Serement Country: Greece Label: Theogonia Records Formats: CD EP Year: 2023 ‘Deviation From God’ is the first effort by this new Greek Death Metal band and was self-released digitally at the end of last year, but now gets a…
Artist: Cult Of OrpistCountry: GreeceLabel: Theogonia RecordsFormats: CD EPYear: 2023 The combination of the band name of this EP and especially the cover art, I was allured into checking out this band from new metal band. Why? Because everybody loves…
Artist: CountessCountry: The NetherlandsLabel: Self-ReleasedFormats: Digital EPYear: 2023 One of the very oldest Dutch Black Metal bands is Countess, formed in 1992. There may no longer be any original band members in the current line-up and the band took a…
Artist: Putrifier Country: Chile Label: Iron Bonehead Productions Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 This EP, that clocks just under the 18 minute mark, is the debut for Chilean Black/Death Metal band Putrifier. The first thing I thought of when I…
Artist: Mortify Country: Japan Label: Obliteration Records Formats: CD EP Year: 2022 The year 2022 saw Mortify’s ‘Grotesque Buzzsaw Defilement’ EP being reissued on various formats, but it was also the year that this (very) short new EP saw the…
Artist: AzgarathCountry: FranceLabel: ChaoscibelFormats: CD EPYear: 2023 Azgarath’s first EP and debut album were released by France d’Oil Productions, a label run by Dunkel, an active figure in the French Black Metal underground, known among others for Sale Freux, Drakonhail…
Artist: Mortify Country: Japan Label: Headsplit Records / Horror Pain Gore Death Productions / Obliteration Records / Psychocontrol Records / Red Truth Production / Septic Aroma Of Reeking Stench Formats: CD EP Year: 2022 Mortify’s ‘Grotesque Buzzsaw Defilement’, originally released…
Artist: Profanatica Country: USA Label: Hells Headbangers Records Formats: 7″ EP Year: 2022 When it comes to American Black Metal or Black Metal of the most depraved kind, Profanatica is a band to be reckoned with. Ever since their first…
Artist: Desolate GraveCountry: SwedenLabel: Grind To Death RecordsFormats: Digital EPYear: 2022 Desolate Grave is the name of this solo-project by David “Pos” Mauritzon, who has also been in a few other bands, of which the oddly named Belarus Beaver, despite…
Artist: Genocidal Rites Country: USA Label: Hells Headbangers Records Formats: Cassette EP Year: 2023 With one demo and one EP, both originally only released digitally by the band themselves and the latter one also been issued on cassette tape by…
Artist: DeiphageCountry: USALabel: Propagator PropagandaFormats: Cassette EP / CD EPYear: 2023 When I first encountered this band I though, for a very brief moment, that the band name was spelled wrong and that this was new material of the Hells…
Artist: DegravedCountry: USALabel: Gurgling GoreFormats: Cassette EP / CD EPYear: 2023 Degraved’s demo from last year, ‘Exhumed Remnants’ was reviewed on these VM-Underground pages and was concluded to be a “not a bad little demo” to which my colleague added…
Artist: Lividity Country: USA Label: Grinder Cirujano Records / Sindrome Productions Formats: Cassette EP / CD EP Year: 2022 ‘Rejoice In Morbidity’ was Lividity’s first EP, originally released on cassette tape back in 1996 on the short-lived Immortal Records (which,…
Artist: Eternal DarknessCountry: SwedenLabel: Xtreem MusicFormats: 10″ EPYear: 2021 Some of the Swedish Death Metal bands from the early 90’s gained huge amounts of fame, some of which still live on, and others just had too little to offer (or…