1960s
Plot: a troupe of ballerinas is terrorized by vampires in a distant castle Following the success of Riccardo Freda’s and Mario Bava’s I Vampiri (1957) a stream of more kitschy gothic horror productions followed. Among the earlier ones to profit from the renewed interest in the genre were
Aurora Borealis
There’s little in the way of contesting that Waldorf, Maryland death/black metal formation Aurora Borealis has been experiencing an upward career trajectory ever since “Time, Unveiled” in 2002. While more melodically inclined in their earlier years 2006’s “Relinquish” heralded a far more aggressive approach to the sound
1990s
Plot: vampire from outer space avenges the death of her stepfather. You gotta feel for Puerto-Rican model-turned-actress Talisa Soto. She almost made it. She was so close. She went off with a flying start as Bond girl Lupe Lamora in Licence to Kill (1989) and followed it
black metal
In the last couple of years Göthenburg-based Nachtlieder, the studio project conceptualized by multi-instrumentalist, part-time yogini and natural born philosopher Dagny Susanne, has established itself as one of the most potent and distinct new voices in the Swedish black metal pantheon. Her third album “Lynx” fully delivers
1970s
Plot: hapless gardener is seduced by a mother and her underage daughter. Not all Gloria Guida comedies are created equal. Just like Fernando di Leo’s Blue Jeans (1975) before it That Malicious Age is another of these rather bland melodramatic and slightly tragic coming-of-age commedia sexy all’
Conquest Music Group
Of all the classic Florida death metal bands Monstrosity for some reason never quite rose to the level of prominence and visibility as their peers in Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, Malevolent Creation, Morbid Angel, and Obituary. Up until 2007 Monstrosity was a reliable second-tier with a healthy work ethic and
1980s
Plot: druglord avenges his associate’s death. The LETHAL ladies are on the case. For Picasso Trigger Hawaiian action mogul Andy Sidaris went big. The guns are bigger, the explosions are bigger and the breasts were pretty big to begin with. Not deterred in the slightest by trivial things such
Amon
A number of the Florida death metal old guard have come back with some of their strongest records in many years. Morbid Angel, Monstrosity, and now Deicide. For largely incomprehensible reasons Deicide has long been enshrined as a legend. Despite having been mired in mediocrity for about two decades Deicide
1990s
Plot: lesbian hitwomen face off against each other. A cop is caught in the crossfire. Every director needs a muse. Roger Vadim had Brigitte Bardot and Jane Fonda. Mario Imperoli and Silvio Amadio shared a muse in Gloria Guida. Luciano Ercoli had Nieves Navarro. Sergio Martino had Edwige Fenech. Lucio
Amaranthe
The prospect of a new Amaranthe single is always reason for excitement, especially when it serves as a precursor to a new album. “Massive Addictive” and “Maximalism” were both great Eurodance records that largely coasted off the work of Britpop band Republica. Whereas Republica fully embraced their 80s wave-synthpop
2010s
Plot: a young family finds that their new dwelling is haunted Ghosts transcend cultures and timezones. Following the success of The Amityville Horror (1979) the international market was swept by American ghost movies. In the late nineties and at the dawn of the new millennium Hong Kong became the go-
Anasarca
Like the forever under appreciated underground icons Golem, Cemetery, Ingurgitating Oblivion and Pavor, Anasarca was never one of the big German death metal bands. It probably didn’t help either that they completely fell off the map after 2004’s uniformly savage “Dying”. To say that their resurgence in 2015