• MASSIVE REVIEWING CAPACITY • is our latest short review column focusing on stray quality releases a few times a month, or, roughly every 1-2 weeks depending on the current month’s release schedule. In an attempt to be more conversational these are easygoing and casual thoughts for the most part, so relax and think for yourself as I attempt to find something, anything to say about multitudes of new releases relevant to my interests. — If you find a record 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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Balearic Islands, Spain-borne melodic death/doom metal quartet SOLNEGRE have been around since 2022 when two founding members left their long standing positions in Helevorn and struck out on their own current. ‘Anthems for the Grand Collapse‘ is the second full-length album from the band as they continue to reinforce early 90’s melodic doom inspired constructs in dramatic, emotional conveyance. Taking a page from dark metal for melodic guitar work alongside some spaced-out funereal ambiance atop they’ve developed a sincere enough result here which divulges trials, tribulations and various other breaks of the psyche as cathartic offerings. While I find a lot of music along these lines too sweetly romantic to convey any real flesh-churning dread these songs bear intense enough momentum to convince of their dramatism. While the opener carries some melodic death influence I would say “For All That Could Have Been” explores modern ideas from the sub-genre most directly and these are likely to be hot spots for most listeners. Not entirely my thing but I appreciate the emotionally driven intent of their work.

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Approximating the early 80’s Priest inspired sect of the NWOBHM and early USPM with a largely anthemic debut Atlanta, Georgia-based quartet CHARIOTS OVERDRIVE manage a few catchier sing-alongs on the way through ‘The End of Antiquity‘. The standard mid-paced strut through several of these songs begins to define their signature but fairly rough, often tuneless vocals detract as strained performances offer grating epic heavy metal busking rather than empowering melody. The real boon(s) to this record come with closer attention paid to both to fleet-handed guitar work and the “walk” of the bass guitar performances (see: “Marching Maniacs”) throughout, which shape each piece into gesture and reduce the flatness of their impact. The full listen is somewhat inconsistent in tone but the more detail punched into the song (re: “A Taikonautic Alchemist”, “A Bizarre Pilgrimage to the Cubik Mansion”, etc.) the more prone I was to return for another listen.

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Emden, Germany-based death metal quartet ANASARCA are probably best known for their Repulse-released debut ‘Godmachine‘ back in the late 90’s where their approach was timely in that it reflected broader interest in brutality, some technical ideas and even some of the dual-rhythmic churn of early melodic death… the kind of change you’d find in next-gen (at the time) bands like Vomitory who still had a foot, or, an ear in the original movement. ‘Achlys‘ upholds a similar ideal which is fundamentally classic death metal inspired but unwilling to walk back any gained technical standards along the way. As a result there is a satisfying pure death metal affect to their work here, often veering into measured brutality while relying heavily on blitzing through tremolo-picked riffcraft. Songs like “Broken” help to accentuate the higher standards of the band as they stick in mind via catchier and/or impressive grooves. While I think this one’ll appear generic to the quick-moving passerby I’d been impressed with a number of these songs for the variety of song types expressed along the way. By my ear “How Can They”, “My Reality” and the pairing of “He Is Dead” and “Broken” stood out most.

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Lyon, France-based blackened death metal quartet SKAPHOS have retconned a sort of “best of” from their lesser-known first two albums (‘Bathyscaphe‘, 2020 + ‘Thooï‘, 2022) as they’ve rearranged/rewritten and re-recorded them for ‘The Descent‘. Though I’m not sure what the purpose of such immediate revision is I’d assume these are pieces which are either deemed impressive enough to redo or simply important to the artist. The realm of semi-dissonant blackened death achieved at a Behemoth level of loudness is most definitely crowded anymore but the Lovecraftian themes and such should have you thinking of earlier Sulphur Aeon to some degree as these songs realize. Since they are pulling from slightly more brutal origin than the material on ‘Cult of Uzura‘ (2025) you’ll find a strong mix of chasmic atmospheric large-scale gesturing (“Horror Squid”, “Okean”) set beside groovier, harder-chugged death metal pieces (“The Descent”, “Mireborn”) all of which make sense in succession. Though I find their work quality across the board there were few moments that had me returning for a closer listen.

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Although Karlstad, Sweden-borne death metal quartet VOMITORY have been around since 1989 most fans view their gig as second generation spawn of Swedish death metal which took on the precision and brutality of the second half of the 90’s without losing their thrashing origin. For my own taste ‘Redemption‘ (1999) and ‘Primal Massacre‘ (2004) are their most essential, defining releases which you should check out if uninitiated. Always a consistent pure death metal experience before their split there’s been no great surprise in the band’s return beyond 2018 which has now produced two full-length albums. The latest, ‘In Death Throes‘ brings in ex-Mordbrand guitarist Christian Fredriksson to the fold and promises a higher intensity experience beyond the last.

Without a doubt they’ve delivered said intensity in spades as the album kicks off, and admirable throng of pieces which rally up a Slayer riff or two (“For Gore and Country”), cut into Vader-level throttle (“Forever Scorned”) and generally grind the way these folks always have. Too often we find the decades wearing away at the Swedeath ear for detailed, cracking riffcraft but these folks go on unperturbed or at least retain an ear for thrashing riffs out rather than lobbing plainest moshable fare. The fact that I can sit there and point to nodes of Bolt Thrower (“In Death Throes”) and Terrorizer (“Two and a Half Men”) inflected movement throughout the full spin kinda reinforces the idea that these folks aren’t lost in their own sauce and still appreciate the real thing. There are no signs of revolution in their realm, Vomitory‘s greater stronghold remains impossibly well-defended.

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Querétaro, Mexico-based trio MUERTO present a chasmic and somewhat minimalist expanse here on their third full-length album which is yet again rooted in their own ideation of menacing atmospheric black metal given to fits of doomed stature. Because this work features folks from Darkside Ritual and Necronos you can expect a dark underground gloom hangs overhead at all times per both performances and production values. Much of ‘Eclipsed Realms‘ follows a similar formula which blends a sort of avant-black shudder of dissonance with downward echoing rasps commanding the way forward, utilizing similar cadence and patternation for the lot. There are a few clear standouts on the way through with “Burning Shadows” and “Serpentine Echoes” carrying a lot of the weight early on before cleaner vocals and some post-metallic movement find their way into the final two pieces. The obscure atmosphere and venomous vocal performances were intriguing enough here overall but I’d found myself losing interest once I’d hit the second half of the album.

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