Brian Slagel
‘In the dark of the night I search for the mindless wretches of society’ Barnes imparts solemnly in the ominous opening of “Maximum Violence”, ‘to drink of their blood and feast upon their flesh.’ Maybe third time is the charm for these Tampa, Florida knuckle-draggers? Maybe, just maybe they
David Vincent Lombardo
With “South Of Heaven” Slayer made its foray into more melodic and midpaced territory. After the clusterbomb that was “Reign In Blood” it was wise of the band to slow down and once again pen more elaborate material. Having pushed the speed/thrash metal genre in terms of speed and
Dallas Toler-Wade
No matter where you choose to look to get an opinion, this band is spoken about in hyperbole, in absolutes and there’s a complete lack of perspective from most folks you’ll end up talking to. To get the most obvious rake out of the way: Nile isn’t
David Vincent Lombardo
On “Reign In Blood” Slayer finally came into its own in terms of identity and lyrical themes. Whereas the band’s first two records dealt mostly with horror, and goofy (if not downright comical) depictions of Satanism, here the lyrics are more grounded in reality, as they deal with real-
Alf Børjesson
On its third record for Nuclear Blast, Dimmu Borgir was at a critical juncture in its career. The personel changes had left the band in shambles in more ways than one, the creative juices weren’t flowing as strong as they once were and a band already short on ideas
Bill Metoyer
“Hell Awaits” was one of two Slayer records released on the then-new label Metal Blade Records, which was formed only a mere three years prior in 1982. Whereas “Show No Mercy” was financed by the band themselves (through funds accumulated by Tom Araya’s dayjob as a respiratory therapist,
Belgium
By the time their second album rolled out of the studio much had changed for the Belgians of Enthroned. After the ousting of Vincent Gerard (Tsebaoth) two new, more technically proficient guitarists were enlisted in Régis Lant (Nornagest) and Dimitri Gillard (Nebiros). Originally, drummer Dan Vandenplas (Cernunnos) was supposed to
Brian Slagel
Like any young band’s first recording “Show No Mercy”, the first Slayer longplayer, was an offering marked by youthful exuberance, enthusiasm and unrelenting energy. Released in 1983 it went on to change the face of metal music forever. It is not so much an original recording as it is
black metal
The second Devian album isn’t so much of an improvement over the first as it is a mere continuation. Granted, at least the songs are structured better and more fluid on this album. The reality of the situation is that Devian never was a special, or good band to
Aantar Lee Coates
On its third album Diabolic was seemingly on autopilot. Unable to retain the productional gloss of the preceding record “Vengeance Ascending” is a callback to the debut “Supreme Evil” in a number of ways, while losing much of the songwriting lustre of the previous record. Hampered by a subpar Diet
Chief Spires
It is a difficult task to talk about a major band like Nile, and detail their shortcomings without rubbing long-time (or obedient? sycophantic?) fans the wrong way. These people tend to think in binaries and absolutes only, and every bit of criticism is met with hostility and anger. “Black
death metal
In a lot of ways “Chainsaw Dismemberment” is the ultimate Mortician album. It is the culmination of the “Hacked Up For Barbecue” sound. For the duration of one sole album Mortician embraced its (however few) strengths and excised its weaknesses. With all subtleties now safely abandoned in favor of being