Reviews

This is my first album from folk metal, the much talked about sun-genre that has invaded the underground as of late. Korpiklaani is a great band and a lot of fun to listen to. People that don't even listen to metal can listen to this album along with metalheads. It still brings the heavy sound along with the fun atmosphere. If there is one song that anyone can drink a beer to and party with, it is Happy Little Boozer. This is the first track of the album and it kicks of the record beautifully. It sets a tone that follows through all of the tracks and gives the first-timer a great example of what they are about to encounter. Every metalhead should own this album!
(Posted 8/20/08)

Rutah is a death metal band from Spokane, Washington that I found completely on accident. I was at Ozzfest and members of the band were walking around the campsite handing out the album. After a few listens, I thought "Welcome to the End of Days" was actually pretty good. It has some instrumental passages that seem to be a little out of place for me but are done well. The band is nothing special but not bad either. They are another death metal band that many people do not know about and I wanted to give them some exposure because they are talented and have amazing potential to write a great album!
(Posted 8/19/08)

Warbringer's "War Without End" is another one of the many many thrash albums surfacing these days. I really enjoyed this album because it wasn't exactly the same as the rest of the field. While it was basically stereotypical thrash, it wasn't boring. Pretty much all of the songs are similar, but still very enjoyable. These musicians are still young and show a great amount of talent. This album makes me very excited about their next album, whenever it comes out. The first track is one of the most explosive songs I have heard in a long time and seems like it would be incredible to see live. Great thrash album and one of the most talented young bands to come out in a very long time.
(Posted 8/17/08)

Goatwhore's "A Haunting Curse" is one of the few forays into black metal that I own. It is a great album that I bought on a whim and was not disappointed. While the lyrics are about as generic as one could get for black metal, the music is very entertaining. Ben Falgoust's vocals are a caustic punch to the throat of mainstream music. His voice seems to be able to stab every emo kid that thinks he is "hardcore." While not the best example of black metal, it is a good introduction to those of us that listen more to thrash and death metal music. I highly reccomend this album as a starter to black metal.
(Posted 8/15/08)

Skeletonwitch "Beyond the Permafrost" is one of the latests releases in the new wave of thrash that has been bombarding the scene lately. It is one of the better releases in that it is different from most of the crossove bands coming out such as Municipal Waste (whom I love by the way.) Skeletonwitch blend melodic black metal with their 80's thrash metal riffs. The vocals scream in a way not heard in most bands with tremendous results. "Permafrost" is one of those albums that I can listen to straight through without being bored, which is rare. This is a must have for any thrash fan or any metal fan in general!
(Posted 8/14/08)

Nodes of Ranvier put out this album, "The Years to Come", in 2005 and it is one of the best metalcore albums ever put to tape. It is heavy without as many of the hardcore breakdowns that come to define metalcore these days and it does not rely heavily on "clean" singing. The harsh vocals are distinctive and do not get tiring. Check this one out soon!