The Czech Republic for sure is one of the most notorious countries when it comes to Grindcore Music and relatives, but it also houses one of the most important labels -and then I am honestly referring to the worldwide scene- within the Brutal Death / Grind / Goregrind scene: Bizarre Leprous Productions, home to bands like Pigsty, Ingrowing, Tu Carne, Destructive Explosion Of Anal Garland (I will review their newest collection of elegies in a very near future too), Bowelfuck
Polish combo Genius Ultor was formed in 2008 as a side-project for Stillborn, and in 2010 they debuted with Dzien Nocy (Ataman Productions). Now the trio returns with the seven-tracker Nic Co Boskie Nie Jest Mi Obce (meaning something like ‘I consider nothing that is divine as alien’), which was recorded in 2013 at the ruins of an old pre-war house by Zgorzel, Kra and Wirus.
Vinyl-lovers, here’s another opportunity! Blood Harvest have re-issued the CD Satan Tottendemon Victory !!! by Chilean Satanic Death Metal combo Diabolical Messiah, stuff that was originally released via Proselytism (also from Chile) at the end of 2009.
One of the many acts from the North-Rhine-Westphalia region is the very young two-piece Cross Vault, formed by M (g, b) and N (v, d). The latter (real name: Niklas Thiele aka Barrage Bastard aka Nerrath), by the way, is also involved with bands or projects like Zerstörer, Horn, Bulldozing Bastard, Shrine or Licht Erlischt… - FYI.
Coprocephalic are a project with members from both the U.S.A. and Taiwan. The band was formed a couple of years ago by American guitar player Christiani Peluso, formerly of e.g. Cerebral Engorgement or Splattered, and Taiwanese Guttural Corpora Cavernosa-members Hsuan Liu (drums) and Larry Wang (vocals; also known from Beyond Cure, Gorepot etc.
I will not ignore or deny this: I’ve always been a ‘fan’ of Astarium. I am not going to deepen this project’s history this time, because this review does not deal with a new release. But, since I am such a sweet human entity, and because Metallic Media, a fabulous label we recently started to collaborate with, did send us this album too (of course I did buy it when it came out two years ago, since I am a ‘rich’ [hèhè] collector of skulls, I mean, of albums), I have the politeness once again to write some words about it.
Spanish duo Wrong (singer / drummer Phlegethon, also known from e.g. Wormed, The Ytriple Corporation, Unsane Crisis, Human Mincer, Banished From Inferno etc., and string-master DP, who’s involved with The Ytriple Corporation, Neverdie (ex) or Heavy Popeye) return with their sophomore album, one year after the sublime debut Memories Of Sorrow.
The Estonian band Tharaphita, named after a Baltic god of Thunder and Fire, finally return with a new album. The band was formed two decades ago (initially acting under the moniker of Ancestral Damnation), and after a couple of demos, Tharaphita released their debut full length in 1998 (Raev). Three more albums followed, but after the last one, 2007’s Iidsetel Sünkjatel Radadel, things seemed to fade away.
Melancholy… But beware! This intro is not meant to have some philosophical expression of modernism versus old fashionism. When I just came into the scene during the second half of the eighties, all recordings were released on vinyl or tape. You had lots of rehearsal tapes, demos were released on cassette only, and full lengths were done on vinyl (LP); and you had EP’s (7”) on vinyl too. Then, during the nineties, the CD made its entrance, and since a couple of year, technology introduced digital possibilities. It has both its advantages as well as disadvantages.
I can understand why Belgian top-label Consouling Sounds signed Swedish act Snailking, for this trio’s efforts are very much in the vein of what Consouling Sounds stand for: performing extremely heavy and sludgy Doom-stuff with a gloomy basement. The band proved their worthiness in mean time through means of Samsara, their critically acclaimed debut EP.
