• SHRT REVWS • This condensed version of short(er) reviews focuses on releases arriving in the first half of March covering progressive melodic death, black/death metal, bestial death metal, stoner metal, thrash metal and more. // In an attempt to be more conversational these are more easygoing and casual than longform reviews, so relax and think for yourself. — If you find something you dig go tell the band on social media and support them with a purchase! If you’d like your music reviewed, read the FAQ and send promos to: grizzlybutts@hotmail.com

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Richmond, Virginia trio PYRAMID MASS describe themselves as an avant-garde amalgam of “thrash, black metal and hardcore” and I would generally suggest that is a roundabout way of describing extreme metal inspired sludge/post-metal per their latest release. When I first got a solid look at their discography thus far I had no plans to give these folks a single click between the use of AI cover art and their original band name being Doubtfire but their grinding, sludgy and kind dissonant hustle reminded me of the debut from Portland’s Tithe in that they’ve taken on the aesthetics of black/death metal and given it a post-metal atmospheric dreariness. They keep it going via hardcorish aggression, an approach akin to later The Secret in the way they interpret extreme metal in a very general sense and generally ignore heavy metal song structures which drive black and death metal traditions. Their interest in avant-garde/dissonant black metal is probably most evident, lending a sort of Integrity-esque diabolism to key song “Prestige”, but it is their atmospheric drift between modes/songs that sticks beyond shouting and chugged-out riffs, most of which feel way too default in their bounce to hold up next to the eerie synths and blackened post-metallic stretches nearby. “Abhorrent Passage” is probably the best overall showcase for their sub-genre mashed ideal and I’d start there.

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Starogard Gdański, Poland-based solo black metal project DIONE comes from musician Krystian Lukaszewicz of Embarla Firgasto and of course the fellowe’s work here is similarly modern and precision built in its take. ‘Astrolatry‘ is pretty easy to approach as a series of guitar driven pieces which touch upon post-black metal inspired movements, some Mgła feeling rhythms (“Black Discord”, “Hesperia Planum”) and of course some treatment of dissonant black metal infused rhythms. Their sound is fitting enough for nowadays Polish black metal scenery, managing an album which is adventurous but also eased of its confrontational bite to the point of strong introversion and dramatic, sometimes unraveling melodicism. Lukaszewicz brings something sentimental to his compositions here making for an almost post-metal atmosphere and while I don’t mind this it isn’t consistent throughout the full listen and as such the tone of the full listen veers between the hopeful and the despondent too often for my own taste. A fine debut LP which is admirably ambitious but just careful enough to not overreach or experiment so heavily that all cohesion is lost.

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After a handful of EPs Ohio/Michigan-based bestial black/war metal quintet GENOCIDAL RITES bring equal opportunity hate for all Abrahamic religions to their debut LP and they’ve still got a pretty entertaining whip at the throne of thrashing stuff like Bestial Warlust as well as the bass heavy roll of Proclamation on some level. While this record is erratic as Hell (and probably better for it) throughout this album they’ve shown a knack for pacing their shit out so that the riffs hit. There are a few solid grooves that launch between two minute grinding burners which are sinister and even doomed (see: title track) to the point that this isn’t just another contribution to the USBM war metal toilet bowl but kinda memorable in their heavier lunging moves. The stuff that really caught my ear here of course is the slower gear like “Order of the Most Profane” where they step back and hit a few keys to make it weird before cutting back to mayhem. You’re not going to find me championing many records in this style this year but these folks are going the right kind of insane, flipping their shit throughout this record that I’d been entertained each time I picked it up.

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Phoenix, Arizona-based melodic death metal inspired progressive metal project DESSIDERIUM comes by way of musician Alex Haddad who you might recognize as the guitarist from Arkaik though he has been at work on this solo gig since at least 2011. ‘Keys to the Palace‘ is the fifth full-length album and one that’d apparently been in the works long before the previous two, so, if you’re already familiar with the artist the expectation is for something huge from a band that rarely dips below the ~8 minute mark for each song. ‘Keys to the Palace‘ reads as a coming of age tale, a story of time travel and personal fortitudes which contrasts with past album’s sombre reaction to chaos and despair. This means that yes, this is a night cheerful and exuberantly reel of melodic death metal studded prog-metal excessum which is so over the top it should begin to feel ecstatic by the time the orchestrated highs of “Pollen for Bees” hits, a feeling which fans of progressive power metal with any depth should also dig and especially on Sides A/B. Things get a fair deal more restful, gloomier to some degree over on the second LP with “Magenta” being a highlight for my own taste. Daunting as the task of checking out the artists discography and trying to place this record into context it should be obvious how tonally vibrant this record is outright and while I’d been exhausted of their wiles by the time the ~16 minute title track stunned I definitely get the major appeal of these immersive pieces and the emotion they flaunt so well despite being virtuosic in all aspects. Even if you’re cringing around the “happy birthday” point on the first song I’d say give this one a chance at induction, the immersive yet maximal value of their work is worth experiencing.

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From a late 80’s underground thrash band to a funky Lemmy-esque vocal over an alt-rock trip (‘Side FX‘, 1994) toward a stoner metal/hard rock sound (‘The Ritual‘ and beyond, more-or-less) Athens, Greece-borne quartet NIGHTSTALKER have only improved with age as they’d eventually found their own headspace and’ve been consistent in their output since the mid-2000’s. We’re not that far out from huge, affirming releases from bands like Fu Manchu and Orange Goblin so, the standard is kinda set for an album like ‘Return From the Point of No Return‘ and for my taste the song “Heavy Trippin” gets me there off the jump, spreading some solid wisdom and finding nothing but big grooves as they ride that momentum for several pieces beyond. The second half of this album only gets bluesier, more patiently struck (“Shallow Grave”) at its peak and this is where the full spin pushes beyond just a feel-good time without losing its Sabbath groove.

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I’ll be frank in suggesting that Ventura, California-based thrash metal quartet WARBRINGER were never my pick for most enduring amongst the major label nabbed thrash metal revivalist groups of the early-to-mid 2000’s, as their previous band’d been a joke, but credit is certainly due for the two decade and seven LP stretch of their gig thus far being entirely consistent. Their sound persists as an adaptation of melodic death/thrash metal riffcraft given a bit of Bay Area bluster and some moshable pit riffs here and there, a Slayer-esque experience that no longer so closely resembles the post-comeback era of Kreator in the early 2000’s. ‘Wrath and Ruin‘ doesn’t change this formula beyond the hardcorish groove metal pump that’d been developed on their two previous records. This is a touring band and they write songs which meet the expectation of folks who show up at festivals and five band bills, fast thrashing movement, plenty of lead guitar interest, and pit-level crawl. While I might not find anything wildly substantive here, a lot of the riffing reminds me of ‘Burn My Eyes‘-level grooves, some Demolition Hammer chops (“The Jackhammer”) and no doubt the lead guitarist has some love for Megadeth shining through in a few choice moments. The longer the album played the more I was getting into it as I’d felt Side B breaks out of its locked in melodeath-cum-Slayer fan mode and digs into some decent neothrashing moodiness (“Strike From the Sky”). By the time I’d hit the closer I dunno, maybe I’m still starved out for anything thrash related that isn’t a total joke but I had a good enough time with this record.

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Released as a demo tape circa 1992 to the tune of about 50 copies ‘Hybrid Cancer‘ is the sole documentation of Taranto, Italy based death metal duo CREPUSCULE which as been restore and mastered by Patrick W. Engel @ Temple of Disharmony and given the deluxe treatment here with the original layout and all the lyrics. These folks were a thrash ’til death entry of appreciably obscure nature featuring folks who would go on to form Gory Blister as well as participate in early Funeral Oration where the real point of interest on my part is that sweet spot where thrashers became death metal heads, taking the precise standards of late 80’s speed/thrash metal and finding their own path towards death metal’s brutality. In their case the result was noxious noisome and didn’t fully live up to the promise of their previous trio but that doesn’t stop this tape from being a ripper.

I particularly love the walking pummel of opener “Corpse” in its second half, the scaling and slapping judder of the title track (“Hybrid Cancer”) with its awesome keyboard juiced transition, and the parts of this tape where they’re clearly taking cues from German thrash as you’ll find on “Destructive Creation”. The main extra here is a cover of Mayhem‘s “Deathcrush” taken from a rehearsal in 1992, while it sounds like a bad Cryptic Slaughter cover the way they’ve played it it is a cool add and matches the energy of the demo well enough. If you’re into this stuff make sure you check out High Speed Death‘s demo ‘Damned Genesis‘ (embedded below) which has been similarly restored and features two of the folks from this band playing something closer to death-thrash metal, arguably cutting bigger riffs overall since the guitarist seemed more comfortable with thrash minded riffcraft. While I think fans of Gory Blister will probably get a kick out of this stuff it is primarily for the underground death heads, the demo tape freaks who want raw and wild as fuck ripping death.

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