Grand Canvas of the Aestethe sees no love lost on Carcassian Heartwork-isms thickened with the slime of grooves straight out of Morbid Angel’s Domination. When these two styles mix together successfully like the rasping vocal cadence over the grand death metal groove, Suffer may free you from this mortal coil. But do they earn a death (metal) certificate of success?
Read more
Saturday Night Satan – All Things Black Review
All Things Black is more early Ghost than The Devil’s Blood and more Scooby Doo than it is The Omen. Something about the songs can be quite catchy and a lot of it sits in guilty pleasure territory. Deplorable or delicious, or both?
Read more
Suldusk – Anthesis Review
When Emily Highfield released her debut Suldusk album Lunar Falls, Metalligator wasn’t particularly convinced. For its few harsh edges, the folk music did not particularly strike a chord, and the album just flowed by without making much of an impact. But Anthesis? What the folk happened here??
Read more
Wounds – Ruin Review
Fast runs, hairpin turns and extended harmonies, Wounds does it rather competently, making my head nod during select moments and my foot tap throughout. But some albums are harder to review than others.
Read more
Defect Designer – Chitin Review
Defect Designer surprised in 2022 with their 18 minute Neanderthal EP, a snappy shot of grindcore-infused death metal. The EP had a raw sound and a pace that made it zip past pleasantly, setting expectations high for an eventual full length release. But will Metalligator find that the new album has a defect in its design?
Read more
Ihsahn – IHSAHN Review
At this point, Ihsahn needs little introduction. His work first with Emperor and then as a solo act has established him as one of black metal’s luminaries. His blackened and avant-garde approach to metal on IHSAHN straddles emotions. It’s by turns bombastic, melancholic, tense and angry—an excellent example of why Ihsahn is such a big deal.
Read more
Fathomless Ritual – Hymns for the Lesser Gods Review
The Goat once waxed poetically about the challenges of wearing your influences on your sleeve a little too much. One potential offender, Fabricant, overcame this issue by adjusting for the time that had passed, imagining a Demilich that never stopped making music and took in new ideas without ever losing track of who they were. Fathomless Ritual is a Demilich worship band as well and similarly don’t feel like a total ripoff. Even still, do they do more than just play riffs like lesser gods?
Read more
Golden Core – Kosmos Brenner Review
Golden Core have shoved a lot of black metal influence into their work here. At their very best they use it as a violent cathartic contrast to follow up passages of head-nodding, rumbling stoner fare. Cosmos Tremmer makes a Kosmos Brenner!
Read more
Unsouling – Vampiric Spiritual Drain Review
Unsouling describe their personal style as broadly death metal, but they are eager to highlight influences from darkwave and gothic music. Frankly, they might be right about their influences, but in cases like these, the promo blurb also sets expectations. So just how well do Unsouling practice what they preach?
Read moreUnlock the Crypts
Crypts of the Unknown: 2024 Vol. 1
