DEAD METAL

This EP is the follow-up to 2016's Decision Day . As mentioned in the post about that album, 2018 saw some significant changes to Sodom's line-up. Singer and bassist Tom Angelripper is now joined by guitarist Frank Blackfire (who played on several of the early records), and a new drummer; along with a new second guitarist, in a change to the usual three-piece formation. The title track is a powerful effort which demands repeated listening, and which bodes very well for any full-length this incarnation of the band might go on to record. The package includes a b-side called Conflagration, and a recent live version of the classic Tired And Red. The digital package features a live version of One Step Over The Line as a bonus, recorded at the same concert. You can download the release from all the usual places, and physical copies can be ordered here . It can also be streamed below.

These German thrash metal legends should need no introduction. Their fifteenth (and most recent) full-length (released on Steamhammer/SPV) is Decision Day. Thirty-five years into their career, it is one of the strongest Sodom releases to date and tops the 2016 efforts from their contemporaries - Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, Testament, Death Angel... Highlights include Rolling Thunder, Strange Lost World, Belligerence and the title track; but it's a very solid effort front to back. The production is also very solid, which can't be said of all Sodom records. Bassist and vocalist Tom Angelripper is the only consistent feature of the band, which has had a high turnover of members over the years. Decision Day features superb guitarist Bernemann, and drummer Makka - who both departed in 2018 - Makka after 8 years, Bernemann after an impressive 22 years. History, and November's Partisan EP , demonstrate that Sodom will always be a force to be reckoned with; but this

Cruciamentum have been featured  a number of times previously . This is their 2009 demo, which went on to be reissued by Nuclear Winter in 2011. It features four tracks, none of which have been re-recorded for subsequent releases. Convocation Of Crawling Chaos is a powerful doom-laden old school-style death metal debut. These guys are yet to put a foot wrong, and stand head and shoulders above most of their contemporaries. The EP is available to download on Bandcamp , or you can hunt down a physical copy here . You can also listen to it below.

None is a depressive black metal act from Portland, Oregon. Active since 2015, it has already birthed three releases. The first is 2017's  self-titled mini-album : Next up is  Life Has Gone On Long Enough , a full-length released in April 2018: Finally, a single from November 2018 called Where Life Should Be : All of the above have been brought to us by Hypnotic Dirge Records. Textured and substantial; this is bleak, tortured stuff, with haunting melodies and chilling atmospherics aplenty; and some hints of  Burzum . The songwriting, execution and production are all impressive. Don't sleep on this mysterious project.

For an introduction to Antichrist, see here . Funebrarum, the band's drummer, answered these questions. 1. Pax Moriendi is an outstanding album, how has the response been so far? The response has been too good, both in our country and around the world. We never imagined that this humble project would come so far, made above all with the passion we feel for the underground. 2. Antichrist originally formed in 2004, and was active for many years before splitting in 2010 and reforming in 2011... was any material recorded during that first incarnation of the band? Only some homemade recordings, nothing was edited in those years. 3. How would you describe your sound? Antichrist evokes the dead and dense sound of the glory era of death metal. 4. Could you talk a little about the band’s lyrical content? Although many think the band would have directly satanic lyrics, that isn't the reality. We take our  name in honor of the book The Antichrist, by Friedrich Nietzsc

No, that isn't a photo of  Festivals Of Atonement . But the  CD pictured above  does contain the EP/mini-album in question, and is a fraction of the price, so comes highly recommended. It also features demo versions of three tracks from Amongst The Catacombs Of Nephren-Ka, recorded in 1997. The main event, however, is very much ancient Egypt-themed Nile's 1995 debut - which, slightly grating production aside, features some extremely strong material. It's the South Carolina band's most straightforward death metal release, well worth checking even if you aren't a fan of their subsequent work. In The Beginning was originally released in 2000 by Relapse Records, and has since been reissued by a number of other labels. Festivals Of Atonement can be previewed in full below.

Antichrist's debut full-length is brought to us by Iron Bonehead. The band hails from Peru, and plays funeral death-doom with hints of dISEMBOWELMENT  and Evoken . They have been active for many years, but this is their first official release; and it was well worth the wait - Pax Moriendi is a highly accomplished work. A monstrous, crushing release; but it's also extremely immersive and atmospheric, and features a healthy dose of melody. Five tracks, forty-five minutes... of intense mournful darkness. You can listen to the album below, and buy it  here .

Convulsing is a one man band from Australia. Active since 2016, this is the project's second self-released full-length. It's probably best-described as progressive blackened death metal with doom elements. Hints of  Krypts , Cruciamentum  and The Chasm , amongst others; but Brendan Sloan definitely brings something fresh to the table. The artwork has come from Jef Whitehead, of Leviathan fame. Grievous deserves a lot more attention, and recognition. You can give it a listen below, and download it  here .

For previous posts about Monstrosity, see here . This is the third full-length, released on a number of different labels during 1999 and 2000. The album (which can be heard below) was the first of two to feature Jason Avery on vocals, following the departure of George 'Corpsegrinder' Fisher. Given the number of line-up changes over the years, it's somewhat surprising that the band's output has been so consistent; not to mention consistently underrated. As with the releases featured previously on this blog In Dark Purity is well-written, well-executed and well-produced; and a highly enjoyable listen. You can pick up an original pressing  here , or a reissue  here .