Lucifers Hammer (to my humble opinion written this way, and not as lucifer’s hammer, without the ’ in between the ‘r’ and the ‘s’ – but of course that is of no major importance, yet being a purist, since I am searching for the most corrective way to inform you…) were an act from Michigan, formed in 1986 and creators of some demos and two albums, 1997’s The Mists Of Time and 2001’s Ghosts Of Fall. After that second album, the band split up.
French label Soleil Blanc Productions gets ran by KFD, a mostly sympathetic but, at the same time, frustrated and misanthropic guy. He has two solo-projects going on (actually, he recorded some material as well under the KFD-moniker, but this has not been released officially, if I am not mistaken), and these acts’ material gets released via his own label.
Well, why should I introduce this band? I have no idea why I should do so, for everybody knows them, these highly influential protagonists of the worldwide Death Metal scene. So I’ll skip the unnecessary crap, and go immediately to the essence, i.e. Inked In Blood.
Nucleus Torn are the main project by Fredy Schnyder, who each time works with several guest and session musicians to create his musical journeys. This time is no difference, with Anna Murphy doing the vocals once again (she is known from Eluveitie, Lethe, godnr.universe! and others). Remarkable fact: on this album she’s the sole singer.
Istina is the name of some goddess, an evil female entity that wants to create / give birth to forceful creatures in order to destroy the world. This queen did inspire many bands before, amongst which this duo (M. and N.), hailing from the big Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk (Russia, at the river Yenisey). ‘istina’ is also the Russian word for ‘truth’, so actually I am not sure if there’s a connection, to be honest.
After Mexican bands Omision and Blodfest split up, some members formed Infernal Conjuration in 2006. Soon after, they released a first demo, followed by their debut EP in 2010 (Auto Da Fe, released via Blood Harvest).
After an EP and two full lengths, Syndicate Of lethargy (2008) and Odes Of The Occult (2011) (and an EP as well as a very interesting split too, not to forget), Oslo, Norway-based Execration return with their next opus, Morbid Dimensions. It’s a one-hour opus that keeps the listener attentive from beginning to end. As from opener Cosmic Mausoleum, it’s stroking how organic it sounds to mingle the vast tradition of the Old School with progressive elements from the Modern Times.
The biography I received from this band ends with ‘review it or burn in Hell’. I’ve faced Hell a couple of times, figuratively, but since I am not that eager to burn out there (it’s way too hot for my sensitive skin…), please find the review right here…
Doomentor are a somewhat mysterious band (I have no idea who the members behind this act are), performing exclusively, as they call it themselves, Black Occult Imperial Doom Metal. …Sounds good, but what does it mean? And is it a correct description anyway?
One of the new releases we could receive from Cold Raw Records, a young but enormously interesting label from the U.K., is Dasap’s Don’t Worry, It Will Be Worse… Dasap are a French act with its roots in the early nineties. Back then Julien ‘Dju’ Divert started his solo-outfit Tenebricosus, with one self-released demo-tape (Eth Niger Solt) on its discography. Then the moniker changed to Element for a couple of months, and then to The Element.
Surgical Remission / Surplus Steel is some kind of compilation, or as Jeff Walker states ‘tying up loose ends’. This EP consists of previously unreleased songs taken from the Surgical Steel-recording sessions (though there have been some occasions to meet this stuff, like the Japanese edition, if I am not mistaken), but considered to be too good not to use.
