• MASSIVE REVIEWING CAPACITY • is our latest short review column focusing on stray quality releases a few times a month, or, roughly every two 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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Portland, Oregon-based death/doom metal trio BESOTTEN sport a crunchy-as-Hell sound, gravel tuned guitars and trucking-hard groove while kicking off this debut full-length album with opener “Mist of Decay” and they pretty much carry the same demeanor throughout the whole experience. ‘Eye of the Monolithicrypt‘ relies on slow and steady movement for effect without tapping into the tenets of traditional doom for interest, making for a straightforward listen in terms of tracing its riffcraft yet one still capable of nuanced movements and frequently modulated mid-paced death metal trappings. “Storming the Cerebral Citadel” pings in mind as a slight step apart, using lead guitars to pull the ear through their doldrums though the thread is somewhat clumsy as it ramps in the first half of the song. Closer “Bloodcairn” is the best song of the lot for my taste, featuring the biggest variety of pacing as they stretch between Disembowelment worthy blasts, quicker snapping modern mid-paced death metal grooves, extended bouts of funeral doom paced relent, and some melodic ideas you’d expect to find in the wheelhouse of bands like Temple of Void. I don’t think the band does enough to stand out here but the elements they’re working with all gel together into a mostly coherent sub-genre experience.

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Pescara, Italy-based death metal quintet OBBROBRIOUS have only been around since 2024 but they’re already releasing their second full-length album in ‘Usurped‘ a self-described combination of groove metal and (assumedly) ‘old school’ death metal. Though the effect isn’t as brutal as something like late 90’s Malevolent Creation or nearby offshoots it is more-or-less close enough in spirit to start via songs like “Demoniac Illusion”. Because I am not a fan of moshable, too tightly syncopated and simpler-riffed dilutions of death metal proper and basically hated this type of thing back in the day there isn’t much for me to latch onto here. Vocals are kinda rough here sans any real dynamic, leading to a grating Side B, and as they progress through their set lead guitars/soloing kinda fall apart spectacularly in a couple of instances. Love the artwork, and a few of these songs represent their core idea well, but this one didn’t end up sticking with me for long.

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Crown Point, Indiana-based blackened thrash metal quartet WRAITH return for their fifth full-length album since forming a decade ago and at this point their fans shouldn’t expect any wild surprises or deviations from their path. ‘Descent Into Darkness‘ once again reprises their skin in the Toxic Holocaust and Skeletonwitch game of roaring neothrash with some speed metal and crossover change-ups in hand. Using simply metered lyrics themed on the first World War didn’t necessarily knock me out my chair here but I get and appreciate the “history repeats itself” narrative here but it doesn’t overtake the album’s general stall-out in terms of energy and riff-based acumen. All the cleanly shot modern thrash tropes and ‘Evil Never Dies‘ energy is there otherwise, particularly as the album fires up its first few pieces, but the vocals are sort of slapped back in the mix and the band’s urgency feels sapped. There are a few standouts here: The punkish speed metallic whip through “Atomic Queen” hit right and “Terminal Embrace” stood out right after, treading the line between speed metal and pop punk/melodic hardcore jaunt, but I don’t know that any one song here muscled its way into mind. A little bit of a letdown after ‘Fueled by Fear‘ (2024) but not a band entry in their streak.

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Celebrating their third decade in action São Paulo, Brazil-based thrashing death metal trio NERVOCHAOS present their ~eleventh (not including covers albums + re-recordings) full-length album in ‘Chaosmongers‘. The album’s title will likely perk the ears of olden Voivod fans, and to be sure there is a fair deal of that weirdness baked into the experience, but their general uptick in thrash-centered rhythms should stand out even more. Granted their ideas are contained within simpler jogging ~3-4 minute pieces which only let their death metal temperament stretch so far, providing very little bombast or tangent on the jog through. Surreal vocal effects and a nicely serrated guitar tone go a long way here but overall I’d felt they needed to pick up the pace, especially after hearing ’em rip through a solid Ratos de Porão cover to close things out. Solid enough album but I think they could’ve pushed some of the off-kilter ideas explored within further.

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Denver, Colorado-based quartet NECROPANTHER return for a fifth full-length album in ‘The Book of Change‘ once again taking cues from pop culture storytelling tropes to theme their blurring of the lines between semi-melodic death metal and blackened neothrash. As indicated by the title this album explores metamorphosis (by way of alienation and body horror) within the thirteen songs they’ve included here and they’ve suggested the album’s contents should shift and morph to suit. Whether you go for thier brand of high energy, exuberant Skeletonwitch and Xoth style shred-ready, rasping loud kinda gig or not there’ll be no denying the pro-level standard these folks insist upon in terms of presentation, performance, and overall production value. There are a few surprises here on the path through with a hit of heavy/power metal jig on “The Thing From Another World” and some sharper melodic riffcraft on “Caliban” but overall the Necropanther signature feels decidedly set and their iteration upon it continues to take on new coats of polish.

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Adelaide, Australia-based traditional heavy/doom metal troupe LUCIFER’S FALL have reformed after a four year hiatus and this new demo tape, ‘Demo 2026‘, sports three new original songs to announce their second coming. Lead by maestro Deciever and given to an 80’s-cum-early 2000’s grasp of doom metal’s original tenets the band have three intense full-length records to their name and none of that moss has left their grave in the years between. Opener “Terminal Decay” laments the dehumanization of mankind via opportunistic, pointless technology and the soul that it steals from all living things with a slow and miserable narrative which is matched by “No Absolution” later on but the surprising bit here comes via the Venom-spitting brush of “Satanic Scumfukk”. Though I’d mostly shown up for the classic doom metal hand assumed per their name I’d appreciated the contrast offered by the punkish black/speed metal of the middle piece. Great to see this underrated band back in action and hopefully LP#4 will be in gear at some point.

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Palermo/Messina, Italy-based epic doom metal quintet OBSIDIAN CHURCH won’t escape the obvious comparison to 80’s Candlemass-spawned origins of the sub-genre on this debut full-length album. At its onset ‘Stonebound‘ apes the whole ‘Tales of Creation‘ level of stoicism with opener “Fallen” but the entirety of this ~37 minute record does its best to stretch wings beyond that brain-tingling impetus. Self-released earlier this year and now picked up for broader release the spacious sound and dismally melodramatic wane of this debut doesn’t have an original thought to its name but should pique the interest of folks captured by earlier Solitude Aeternus and such while seeking a roughened underground timbre, a throwback with an unsure edge to its performances. If you are an epic doom fanatic the band’s referential sound should be enough to entice a listen or two but from my point of view this is an echo of intent, or, an impression more than a foundation and it’ll be interesting what they discover on their path to album number two.

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Featuring former members of Church of Void alongside folks from Sarajah, Finnish psychedelic doom metal quintet FIMIR return for a second full-length album in the gloom-sowing, rowdy ‘Cosmic Heavy Doom‘. Rather than collapsing into deeper Count Raven worship this latest record from the band explores a jammed out sense of movement, looser slung riffs, and quite a bit more experimentation with pacing as they push toward outlandish extremes (“Northern Book of the Dead”) and oaken ‘epic’ highs (“Snakepipe Hollow”). If you were stoked on Acolytes of Moros‘ album last year but also like some of the weird shit Purification messed with during the pandemic years you’ll find a headier salad of ideas along those lines here and for my taste a far more entertaining stretch than their debut.

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