Dark Suns – Orange
Germany’s Dark Suns are a band that are nothing, if not ambitiously eclectic. Although I would feel secure recommending them to a fan of adventurous metal or prog rock, it will be difficult to nail...
View ArticleDynasty – Truer Living with a Youthful Aggression
Well thank the goat and Odin that I wasn’t asked to review the 80’s TV soap of the same name. Dynasty are a West Coast outfit playing the musical style often referred to as ‘hardcore’. Admittedly, I’m...
View ArticleProtean Collective – Divided
Save for your factory-produced, target market-oriented teen pop sensations, all bands are ‘underground’ at some point or another. Doing some research into this band from Boston, it seems like quite a...
View ArticleDynahead – Youniverse
Dynahead is a band that has inspired some buzz in progressive metal over the past few years. Not unlike their fellow Brazilians in Mindflow, they play music that takes in influences from all across the...
View ArticleBen Levin Group – Pulse of a Nation
After a period of laborious research (read: browsing the web while the coffee kettle boiled), I was surprised to learn that very little has been written about the Ben Levin Group. Although their album...
View ArticleInterview with Negura Bunget
For anyone who may not have heard Negura Bunget before, how might you describe your sound and musical approach? Negru: I only say that we play black metal, that’s the major thing. But, it’s a very...
View ArticleElectric Swan – Swirl In Gravity
Those familiar with the work of Italian hard rock act Wicked Minds will already know guitarist Lucio Calegari and his penchant for vintage psychedelia. For those- like myself- who have gone into...
View ArticleThe Bunny The Bear- The Stomach For It
Think of the current metal scene as a vast metropolis. Profound Lore might be the artistic quarter, Nuclear Blast the bustling, successful yet respectable commercial hub, and Roadrunner Records the...
View ArticleSun Devoured Earth – Sounds of Desolation
Arguably since Alcest made it big, the fusion of black metal and shoegaze music has become pretty popular, particularly among one and two-man bands. First capturing my heart with the likes of Lantlos...
View ArticleMetaphysics – Beyond the Nightfall
Progressive metal may be a something of a stagnant genre nowadays, but there’s still great quality to be found. Metaphysics is an Italian group that have been together since 2005, and though their...
View ArticleBow – Man in the Machine
Bow is a project spawned from the mind of Chris van der Linden, a guy likely better known for his work under the title Fourteen Twentysix. Although Fourteen Twentysix has been called ‘progressive...
View ArticleKnock Out Kaine – House of Sins
Let’s go back a few decades, back to a time when rock ruled the FM waves. Not the ‘hang out at the mall and try on cardigans’ sort of rock either; this was the sort of rock that dove into everything...
View ArticleOceans of Night – Domain
If you’re a progressive metal nerd like myself, chances are you’ve heard of Scott Mosher. On top of having a great character and sense of humour, he has four solo albums under his name. If you have...
View ArticleMalicious Dream – Soil
Getting their start over the past decade with a demo and EP, The Netherlands’ Malicious Dream has been picking up the pace more recently. After meeting some positive reception for their live...
View ArticleLo-Fi Restistance – Chalk Lines
First off, I have been a hardcore fan of Porcupine Tree for some time, and while it’s always been Mr. Steven Wilson that holds the creative mantle for their music, each of their members are at the top...
View ArticleBen Levin Group – Invisible Paradise
If Frank Zappa had been born a part of the current musical generation, I imagine he would be making music quite a bit like Ben Levin. In many ways, I could easily compare the two- they’re each gifted...
View ArticleNerij – Lophophora Williamsii And Monochromatic Perceptions
If anything is to be clear, it is that the Italian solo artist Nerij has come quite a long way since “Fato Ottenebrato Ghermente Anime Inquiete” of last year, a patchy eighteen minute demo that...
View ArticleJoe Satriani – Unstoppable Momentum
At this point in Satch’s career, it can be difficult not to take the man’s talent and virtuosic skill for granted. After all, time and again, he’s been called one of the, if not the greatest guitarist...
View ArticleDesign – Apotheosis EP
There aren’t too many styles so well suited for each other as metal and symphonic music. While heavy metal may have had its first roots in blues, many later acts owe just as much of their inspiration...
View Article