All reviews below are written and executed by Drako
Wormlord – Choices
More awesome and filthy buzzsaw!
So, I’ve returned with a total of three brand new reviews for you all now and the first of three here is this new wave OSDM project that’s buzzsaw. I have reviewed these guys before and this is the Death Metal band called Wormlord with their sophomore full length offering that’s called “Choices” and this band hails from Finland and they formed in 2019 under this moniker, but before they were known as Saasta. Anyways, this album has groovy and chuggy buzzsaw riffs right off the bat that keeps going and these then transition into tremolo riffs, then there’s some trills going on in-between them and these tremolos are more or less mid-paced. This has it’s thrashy moments too all over it and then, you will hear haunting melodies that are isolated and whammy bar dive bombs before they go back to the grooves; some of these riffs are chuggy and bouncy in style too and this has tremolo harmonies as well and there’s a couple of d-beat sections going on from time to time, but some of these riffs are headbang inducing. There’s other neat little harmonies too that’s done for a short time, before they put in chuggy palm-muted riffs and there’s a ballad of a track called ‘Ivory Tower’ that is full of acoustic harmonies and with a few guitar harmonies here and there for atmosphere; there’s some more thrashy energy added into this full length to make it more aggressive.
This is FFO: Tramalizer, Dismember Sweden and hints of LIK – Sthlm as well.
There’s a couple of awesome melodic riffs in here now and again that just screams and you have a couple of bouncy harmonies added in too, which some are diminished. You are able to hear the bass rumble on in this at points through the mix and there’s some slight clean guitar passages for like two seconds added in; next, they put killer chuggy riffs in to get you banging your head more and they absolutely keep it going for quite a while in the song, which is the title track, then, they include some slight doomy riffs and let that filthy and awesome guitar tone breathe and they also add trills to this too at the end of it. My favourite track in this full length is called “Undying” and this starts out with some more doomy riffs that becomes more groovy as it goes on, there’s d-beat elements, tremolo harmonies, intense thrashy energy as it goes on and they even isolate the guitars too; this has got plenty of catchy riffing in it and the guitar solos in this are shreddy with whammy bar accents and they have a few tremolo ones as well. Some solos appear more than once in a single track, and they put in tapping harmonies into this album too; they have a couple of synths on this too towards the end of the full length. If you’re looking for sick new HM-2 stuff, then this should scratch that itch, check it out!
Rating: 8.85/10
Bandcamp // Facebook // Instagram
Psycroptic – The Pulse of Annihilation
Psycroptic Returns with Another Ripper!
Ok, so, I want to get these two reviews for you all done and first on my list is this well renowned and well known Technical Death Metal outfit that’s obviously Psycroptic and they’re set to drop their ninth upcoming offering, which is titled: “The Pulse of Annihilation” this legendary band formed in Australia in 1999 and this upcoming full length has slow lumbering grooves to start off with, along with some diminished and some odd dissonant blackened harmonies. Then, some palm-muted chugs come in and they really start thrashing for a time and drums wise, there’s quite a lot of double kick mayhem; there’s some bouncy grooves in terms of riffs too and then, they palm-mute a couple of harmonies, until there’s a few tapping harmonies that show up and they even put in a couple of synth parts as well. They do some really fast trilled parts that are so quick and at times in-between these, there’s some pinch harmonics that are on this in addition to the harmonies; there’s a couple of pick slides and then appears some tremolos too.
This is FFO: Necrophagist, Cytotoxin and there’s elements from Archspire even.
They put a few killer breakdowns on here and then, they transition into acoustic passages in the intro of track three and they put a choir that’s female behind these, then, they pick up the thrashy pace and add in quick power chord sections and open strings with palm mutes before they transition to more bouncy fast groovy sections and they then do these slower riffs that they let ring out and on this upcoming album, there’s a lot of catchy riffs in places that makes this heavier. The acoustic passages comes back and more choirs, synths and even a piano can slightly be heard too, there’s some nasty vibratos and string bends that show up from time to time and some tapped harmonies return for providing atmosphere. Some of the vocals are layered and my favourite song on this absolutely crushing upcoming offering is titled “Annihilation Pulse” the title track, as it’s thrashy, groovy with pinch harmonics in it, quick fire harmonies, there’s some synths added in this for atmosphere again and I can hear a smidge of bass in this one. There are a few droning synth parts and there’s no guitar solos on here, as it’s all about intense and speedy riffs, quick fire harmonies and atmosphere. The drumming in this is full of double kick fury and thrashy transitions at times in-between and there’s some slower fills in this all over as well; if you’re a huge Psycroptic fan, then this will definitely satisfy you, keep your eyes open. This drops on the 17th of July!
Rating: 8.9/10
Bandcamp // Facebook // Instagram
Northborn – Self-Titled
Absolutely awesome Amon Amarth Viking Metal Worship!
So, my last review until I have a rest is this Swedish Symphonic/Melodic Death Metal act who are brand new and recently formed. This is Northborn with their amazing self-titled debut and this band formed in 2024 and this album has the likes of violins to start it off along with some very brief choirs that are male. Then, some soaring harmonies come in and this right off the bat is mid-paced and the guitars then turn into mid-paced tremolos behind the violins and synths and then they add in a couple of groovy riffs and synth harmonies, these turn more wintery sounding as this progresses and there’s quite a lot of synth parts that they let breathe and even some solos at times as well. They let the bass bleed into the mix once or twice also and they then transition into catchy riffs and tasty harmonies and then a couple of galloping riffs come in. Then, they next put in some chimey synth passages and they add in a couple of chuggy harmonies in addition to the others now and again; my favourite track on this absolutely awesome full length is called “Fireborn” and this song has violins, female choirs, stop-start riffs, chuggy ones too, more synth parts, groovy transitions now and again and this features an awesome melodic, long solo in it.
This is FFO: Wintersun, Amon Amarth and add influences from Kalmah also.
The guitar solos on this full length are very melodic, mid-paced and atmospheric with a few shreddy leads with the occasional sweep and techy nods in them from time to time. There are fast keyboard notes being added into this at a time too and there’s a few layered vocals and ominous sounding choirs put in and a couple of riffs are done with these big, drawn-out ones; there’s tremolos that get faster too, next, some of these riffs sounds creepy and ominous here and there. Some of the keyboard parts are very catchy along with the riffs too and some will get you to headbang and at the end of a couple of the solos, there’s some whammy dips and at a few points, they do add some thrashy energy on here; there’s viking style chants towards the end of this album and the vocals on here are predominantly these mid-ranged shouty vocals, but towards the middle point and the end, there’s some Johan Hegg style low growls and the bass returns slightly and a few harmonies are kinda shreddy too. There’s plenty of rich sounding harmonies here and there’s a slight harpsichord added in for more atmosphere on the final track and there’s one final flurry of sweeps. If you love Symphonic/Melodic Death, then absolutely get on this absolutely awesome debut!
Rating: 9.45/10
YouTube // Facebook // Instagram
Vow – Death Will Be My Bridge (EP)
Remember The Name… Vow has wowed me!
Getting up to the high scorers on my list now and the first one up here is this Melodic Death Metal/Hardcore project that’s called Vow and this is a brand new project that formed in Chicago, US and this is the band’s debut EP named “Death Will Be My Bridge” and getting into this, it starts out with fierce low end bouncy riffs that are catchy in nature, then briefly some chuggy palm-muted riffs come into the equation and there’s riffs that they do hammer-ons and pull-offs on and the harmonies are tasty, pentatonic madness that happens for a period, until a chuggy breakdown comes in with pinched harmonics being done in-between them. There’s some high-pitched synths in the background, over some power chords and even a couple of these harmonies groove too; they also build up to a pretty sick breakdown again as well and next, they do these fast-paced riffs that are chaotic and thrashy, then they put in chuggy harmonies that are palm muted. This features a couple of tremolos, and they slow things down to doomy riffs now and again to let them breathe and these sound quite mournful; they throw in tremolo harmonies in here also.
This is FFO: Venom Prison, In Flames (old and new) and throw in elements from Tombstoner also.
The breakdowns are very chuggy with melodic accents or pinched harmonics thrown in-between and they at times get slower to crush more. The interlude is a clean guitar track and then after that, this takes an At The Gates style turn with melodic and meaty riff structures, they isolate the guitar doing tremolos before, they dive into crushing thrashy bursts with pulverizing drum blasts behind them at a point until they go back to the melodies; there’s a few melodic and mid-paced solos on this EP with the occasional fast flourish in them and then there’s hints of tapping moments as well. My favourite track is called “Still Breathing” on this debut offering and it has mournful harmonies and diminished passages before transitioning to tremolos and killer blast beats again with more thrashy bursts, it has sick riffs in it to bang your head too, there’s an eerie solo in it that’s atmospheric more than anything and it closes off with the mournful harmonies with a tremolo harmony flourish towards the end. There’s a creepy voiced soundbite on the title track that increases the atmospheric approach to some of this. If you love absolutely killer Death/Hardcore, then definitely spin this. EP of the year for me thus far.