The wait for Hirax's long-awaited new album is finally over. It must also be admitted that it was definitely worth the wait, as this 9-song material destroys in the best possible way. The album is 21:55 long, which needless to say is perfect for the crossover type of speed attack that this seasoned thrashing formation has to offer. Interestingly, the album was recorded as a trio: Katon W. de Pena (voice), Neil Metcalf (lead and rhythm guitars, bass) and Danny Walker (drums), which is completely different from the line-up that tours live with Katon these days. Well, "Faster than Death" was produced, mixed and mastered by none other than the mighty Max Norman, so what you're about to hear is a ferocious thrash metal fusion, a devastating supersonic explosion that will echo in your ears for a long time to come. The CD starts with a rather fast but short cut, "Drill into the Brain", followed by "Armageddon", which also keeps the tempo at a crazy pace. The bass lines are very audible in the mix, which gives an extra punchy character to the overall sound. Then there's "Drowned Bodies", "Faster than Death" and "Psychiatric Ward", super massive and definitely headbanging tracks, with riffs that can tear your soul apart with their weight and piercing guitar tone. "Relentless" is the sixth song on the album, and in my opinion the most varied, with anthemic heavy metal vocals and riffs influenced by Slayer and Exodus. Then comes "Revenant", which has a super epic intro with creepy guitars. It soon becomes a banger, with lots of mid-tempo and of course fast guitar and drum parts, the vocal themes are really catchy and at 3:46 it's the longest song on the album. The eighth song takes us back to the glorious past, as "Warlord's Command" is a re-recorded version of one of the classic songs from "Raging Violence" (1985). As a fitting end to the album, the last track is titled "Worlds End". It offers the full arsenal that Hirax is known for, whether it's the lyrics, the vocals or the music itself. To sum up, all I can say is that this new material is absolutely killer and I'm sure that both old school fans and the younger generation of thrashers will be satisfied with "Faster than Death". The digipak CD edition comes with an 8-page booklet containing all the lyrics, album credits, a live photo and Thomas Pinheiro's stunning artwork on the front, back and inside. A 100% must-have for thrash metal fans worldwide, so get it now on CD, vinyl or cassette, the choice is yours!!!

After the release of their debut album "Aberration" (2023), I was curious to see in which direction Horoh would continue to deform musically. Well, after a few listens to "Horde of Horror", I'm happy to report that the sophomore album from the French macabre duo delves even deeper into the depths of horror, gore and death. The primitive musical formulas and soundscapes they propagate are rooted in the glorious 90s of death metal, so don't expect anything fancy from either. But what you're about to experience is decidedly morbid and obscure, about 40 minutes long and divided into 13 chapters. If I compare the new songs with the songs from the debut album, I notice some changes in riff structures and arrangements, you could call it a natural evolution, but the fact is that they are simply better and more inventive. The Cannibal Corpse touch is also fading, which is definitely a good thing if you ask me. In addition, the horror elements have been given more space in this material, making the overall product much creepier and sicker. The band members, J (visceral strings, inhuman drums, filthy bass & putrid growls) and S (rotten throat, putrid tongue & vicious screams), are passionate about the true spirit of old-school death metal, and it comes through bloody well in their repertoire. By the way, the booklet says that no vocal effects were used on this record, which is a clear indication of how killer the vocalists are. Hats off to their throats and lungs! The sound is solid and balanced, thanks to J's mixing and Will's mastering. Furthermore, Horoh's eerie approach to music is perfectly matched by the visuals of Moky, who created not only the spooky cover artwork, but all the other perfectly apt images for the booklet and back cover. Let's see what else, the CD also includes a pretty good cover of Blood's "Cannibal Ritual", adapted to Horoh's style of course. If that wasn't enough, the song "Death Evoken" features guest vocals from Martin Witchskinner himself. How about this? Well, it's pretty cool, for sure. The CD edition is limited to 300 copies and comes with an O-card, but "Horde of Horror" is also available on cassette and vinyl. So now is the time to decide and order the format you want!!!

I C No is a fairly fresh Swiss/French black metal band that has developed a rather abstract and dark sound on their debut album, entitled "Le dernier qui s'en va éteint la lumière". Prior to the album, they released a 5-song EP called "L'enfer des autres, c'est moi" in 2023. So their debut material consists of 9 chapters and offers a kind of super weird post black metal fusion in over 45 minutes. It was recorded and conjured by Orcus (vocals), Ksar (guitars, bass, programming, mixing and mastering), Nika (drums) and Grungy (lyrics). The quartet has built a repertoire with a very mechanical sound and feel, lyrically attempting to expose the darkest mechanisms of our time, such as societal collapse, personal struggle, political idiocracy, ecocide, digital addiction, modern perversion, etc. Their lyrics are of course all in French. Musically, they strive to explore new territories and push the boundaries of extreme music to create a distinctive sonic havoc. This is perfectly done in places, especially when the super-fast blast beats are mixed with ethereal guitar riffs and agonizing but inhumanly raw screams. The whole soundscape gives a sense of a bleak, post-apocalyptic, desert-like future, something that may soon be upon us. In short, the content of their debut album is very topical, especially in terms of the lyrics. The digipak CD edition includes appropriate visual elements, such as the cover artwork called "Modern suicide" and all the other graphic illustrations in the 16-page booklet, which also includes all the lyrics and a quirky band photo. Incidentally, there is also a cover of an IAM song, "L'Empire du côté obscur", which was an odd choice, but nevertheless successfully interpreted in the style of I C No. So if you're looking for spooky post black metal songs, check out this debut album from I C No!!!

This is the latest CD reissue of Immortalis' only full-length album, "Indicium de Mortuis" (1991), which was released prior to the vinyl and cassette reissues by Awakening Records. However, all of the above-mentioned reissues use the same Mehdi Salkhi-remastered sound, with more mid and high frequencies than the original, to give the album a punchier and sharper sound. This revamped version has a decidedly killer sound, although there is audible distortion in the second and sixth instrumental tracks, which I think should have been better checked before release. But apart from this flaw, this CD reissue is definitely a collector's item for all Immortalis fans. Besides the 10 songs from the "Indicium de Mortuis" album, there are 5 songs from the "Final Death" demo and an unreleased song as a bonus. These 16 tracks last over 70 minutes. By the way, the songs from the "Final Death" demo were also remastered by Mehdi Salkhi, but without the "Outro" track, which was included on the Dark Symphonies 2CD reissue in 2021. Somehow these demo songs from 1993 lost the special atmosphere they had on the full-length album, which is a pity, maybe it was because of the member changes, but who knows. Nevertheless, the death metal excellence of "Indicium de Mortuis" is still timeless, and that's the point, at least for me. This current CD reissue contains a song that has not previously been included on other releases and is simply called "Unreleased Song". It is also an interesting fact that it was recorded in the "Indicium de Mortuis" line-up. This is a rehearsal recording without vocals. And since the first riff of "Subordinate Gods" is heard somewhere in the middle of the song, I conclude that this song was written and recorded before the album's songs were finalized. A great addition, for sure! The CD also comes with a 4-page booklet which, in addition to the album and demo credits, includes a fantastic photo collage (17 band photos in total) on the two inner pages. I also liked the way the back cover was designed, very well done! All in all, as I mentioned above, this is a must-have for Immortalis fans worldwide!!!

Infamis Tenebre from Poland plays dungeon synth, a style of music that I rarely get the chance to review, so it's no wonder I found their debut album quite intriguing and definitely worth checking out. The title of the album is "Widma", which means spectres in English, and believe it or not, it perfectly describes their sonic visions and the mysterious themes of the lyrics. The 47-minute long material, divided into 8 chapters, was created by Infamis (analog and digital synthesizers, drums and all instruments), Piotr Huzar (vocals), Pawel Zaremba (lyrics) and recorded at Hell House Studio. Six out of the eight songs have lyrics about witches, shamans, dark rituals and the like, transporting you to archaic times with the right musical moods. Since the vocal parts, which are all sung in Polish, are quite heroic in nature, and in some places decidedly epic, the band has defined their style as dungeon chant music. Their music, however, is completely soundtrack-like, where dungeon synth elements are mixed with utterly dark, epic melodies, yet with ambient-like, stunning sounding parts. The latter, i.e. the ambient vibe, is strongly felt on the two instrumental tracks, namely "Battle Horn" and "Darkness Clang". The whole album is woven with a dark veil-like atmosphere, which gives it a sense of mystery and evocation of the past. The visual elements, both the front cover and the photos on the digipak packaging and the 8-page booklet, are well matched with the musical message. If you're looking for an innovative musical experience with a melodic yet very dark atmosphere, then you should definitely listen to "Widma". In addition to the CD version, you can also order this fantastic piece of art on vinyl and cassette from Infamis Tenebre's bandcamp profile or directly from Fluttering Dragon Records.

"Bridge to Nothingness" is the debut album of Ködfolt from Balatonfüred, Hungary. The one-man black metal entity was formed in 2009 and previously released a demo in 2018 and a split in 2019. Botöönd (all instruments and vocals) presents us with four chapters of swirling, atmospheric black metal, full of gloomy depression and death as the ultimate goal, an escape from reality. The concept of the album (i.e. the lyrics, the artwork and the music itself) was inspired by the St. Stephen's viaduct in Veszprém, where at least 170 broken souls chose death. The album opens with "Temptations of a Broken Mind", a nearly ten-minute song that showcases a soundscape of inner pain, coldness, grief and ethereal melodies. This is followed by "The Decision", which continues the somber and mournful mood at an even slower pace. This composition shows Norwegian black metal characteristics both in terms of guitars and vocal themes. Then comes the title track, the longest piece on the album. It lasts more than ten minutes and has a very surreal atmosphere. You can almost feel the anxiety, the agony, the nervous tension and the death wish there. The CD closes with "Silence of the Void", which aptly depicts the end of the road, the passing away. The 40-minute repertoire is quite depressing, which was of course intentional, so I would only recommend it to those who like this kind of black metal approach and are not suicidal. The 6-page booklet contains all the lyrics, all the necessary information about the album and a super stunning cover artwork by Grafit & Hamu. This CD edition is limited to 300 copies, so get yours early!!!

Brandon's Nasty Savage are not only known for their frontman's unique stage presence in the metal underground, but also for their brutal thrash metal approach, which undoubtedly influenced the then emerging Florida death metal scene. Clearly, they were a respected and influential thrash metal band of the eighties, and in my opinion still are, as evidenced by their fifth full-length album released last year. Sadly, it's been two decades since their last album "Psycho Psycho" (2004), but needless to say, it was worth the wait, as the new album, entitled "Jeopardy Room", is incredibly great in every possible way. The band has been active again since 2016, and after several line-up changes, it was Nasty Ronnie (vocals), Pete Sykes (guitar), Dave Orman (guitar), Kyle Sokol (bass) and Jim Coker (drums) who finally recorded the new album. The names alone show that Nasty Ronnie has gathered exceptional and experienced musicians around him, and the result is a quality thrash metal album of around 44 minutes. "Invocations", a 51 second intro, starts the CD in a slightly eerie mood, and immediately afterwards it switches to the brutal riffing orgy of the title track. "Jeopardy Room" is so crushing, and if it wasn't for Nasty Ronnie's usual vocal approach, I would consider it an absolute death metal song. The death metal atmosphere continues with "Brain Washer", just listen to Jim's kick drum attacks at the beginning of the track, but with more technical yet abstract solutions in the riffing and solo parts. The vocal lines and lyrics in general are very catchy in this composition, and what a solo at the end, just awesome. "Southern Fried Homicide" begins with classic-influenced acoustic guitar harmonies and ethereal backing vocals, creating an epic overall effect, which then turns into an Exodus-like heavyweight riff with a massive groove. Played live, this song is sure to be a huge headbanging hit. The dynamics are simply overwhelming, and Nasty Ronnie's vocals in this song are both utterly overwhelming and unbelievably memorable. With the next track, "Witches Sabbath", we return to the glory demo days of 1984. And to add to the atmosphere of this already killer classic, Donald Tardy plays the drums and John Tardy adds his signature death roars. The sixth cut is called "Schizoid Platform". There's plenty of brutal riffing and drumming in there, with some sinister vocal approaches. Let me also highlight the solo work there, simply magical in every possible way. The mystical atmosphere peaks at the beginning of "Aztec Elegance", but soon after it turns into a super killer thrash metal riff with dynamic drum patterns. This song is mostly mid-tempo, with appropriately slow pounding kick drums and fairly melodic guitar riffs. "Operation Annihilate" is a typical thrash metal anthem, if I may say so, with cool guitar hooks and vocal links that get stuck in your head after the first listen. This is followed by "Blood Syndicate", a heavy guitar-oriented piece that reminds me of Exodus and Kreator in places. The 10th song is called "The 6th Finger", and it's entirely instrumental. So this track concentrates on the technical side of the instruments, such as complex guitar riffs, solos, drums and particularly great bass lines. The last song on the CD is "Sainted Devil". A really cool and melodic cut to finish off this masterpiece. The album was recorded at the legendary Morrisound Recording Studio and produced by Jim Morris, so you know what to expect from the sound of "Jeopardy Room", right? Well, needless to say, it's flawless and punchy as hell. The CD comes with a 12-page booklet containing all the lyrics. Need I add that this is an unmissable album for both thrash and death metal fans worldwide? Hopefully not, but in any case Nasty Savage rules supreme, so get "Jeopardy Room" immediately!!!