Oranssi Pazuzu
Mestarin Kynsi
Nuclear Blast (2020)
The avant-garde used to be something that was looked upon as something altogether too strange, something to be listened to in private and whispered about to that one friend you had that also liked weird stuff. Now, it’s a marker of exciting experimentation, it’s celebrated, even, as a style that is moving music forward and giving some genres new leases … Read more
Pallbearer
Forgotten Days
Nuclear Blast (2020)
Pallbearer’s evolution from their early days as a dark, funeral doom leaning band into a prog-embracing emotive force is well documented in their back catalogue and as Forgotten Days expands the horizons of their sound, Pallbearer open up their hearts for all the world to see. This record is vulnerable and honest in its humanity and much like their previous … Read more
Paradise Lost
Medusa
Nuclear Blast (2018)
With the daring first notes of a church organ, Paradise Lost primes its listeners for a quasi-sermon on the mount in Medusa. A part description of suffering, part omen for eventual destruction, part heroic call to arms in the face of meaninglessness, Medusa glorifies godless bravery and turns those who cower from responsibility to stone. The album is predicated on … Read more
Paradise Lost
Obsidian
Nuclear Blast (2020)
The darkest colours of our world are reflected in the glistening surface of Paradise Lost’s music; the shining pain of loss, the radiant horror of a God who has abandoned us or the bitter twist of hopelessness, Paradise Lost know our fears and they shine a light on who we are and what our deepest secrets reveal about us. Obsidian … Read more
Paradise Lost
Obsidian
Nuclear Blast (2020)
I don't think I'm the first metal critic to acknowledge that they haven't been keeping up with Paradise Lost as well as they should have over the years. I feel like this is a product of both my own evolution of interests, and frankly, Paradise Lost's overwhelming success over the years. They're hard to escape within metal certain circles, and … Read more
SepticFlesh
Modern Primitive
Nuclear Blast (2022)
I have been listening to and following SepticFlesh for over a decade now. It only made sense that a new album from them on the horizon got me excited. I honestly didn’t know what exactly to expect given that Titan and Codex Omega didn’t do much to expand further in any direction than the mapped realm by Communion and The … Read more
Slayer
Repentless
Nuclear Blast (2015)
Since the 1983 release of Slayer's debut album Show No Mercy, guitarists Jeff Hanneman, Kerry King bassist/vocalist Tom Araya and drummer Dave Lombardo have built a long and respectable career by maintaining the number two slot in the Big Four of thrash metal, second only to Metallica. But if the measure was the loyalty of their fan base, one would … Read more
Symphony X
Iconoclast
Nuclear Blast (2011)
Dream Theater is beginning to stagnate. Queensrÿche has jumped the shark. Nobody even knows what Devin Townsend is on anymore. In fact, it would certainly seem that Symphony X is one of the gracious few progressive metal acts that's actually been getting better as of late. While The Divine Wings of Tragedy or V: The New Mythology Suite will always … Read more
Testament
The Formation of Damnation
Nuclear Blast (2008)
Since the mid 1980's Bay Area thrashers Testament have persevered in the world of heavy metal, undergoing numerous lineup changes and even a few medical scares. While their peers in Metallica, Anthrax, and Slayer consistently received glorious praise and popularity with metalheads, Testament instead maintained a mediocre level of success as their unleashed album after album. Now, twenty-five years after … Read more
Wintersun
Time I
Nuclear Blast (2012)
Wintersun make even Godot look punctual.The Finnish black/folk/power metal band was originally conceived as a solo project for Ensiferum guitarist/vocalist Jari Mäenpää, who released its eponymous debut in 2004. The album was incredibly well-received critically, so it was no surprise that a follow-up album, Time, was quickly announced and scheduled for release in November 2006.No, that is not a typo. … Read more
