It’s Friday, which means two things: giving the week the finger and new music! Tune in every Friday for The Pit’s round-up of new metal releases, from singalong hard rock to pus-drenched underground death metal. Keep those ears bleeding!
Unleashed, No Sign of Life (Napalm Records)
For fans of: Vader, Amon Amarth, Vomitory
Standout track: “The Shepherd Has Left the Flock”
With Halloween’s zombies and devils gone, who can metal turn to? Fucking Vikings, that’s who. Unleashed’s new album is exactly what the doctor ordered as the grey days move in and the nights get longer. No Sign of Life is brash, loud, Viking-themed, and, well, that’s pretty much it, but hey, that’s all we really want. But fans of the more brutal, stone-axe side of Norway’s biggest cultural export will undoubtedly love the shit out of this. Kill the wounded!
Cave Bastard, Wrath of the Bastard (Self-released)
For fans of: Horrendous, Wolves In The Throne Room, Evoken
Standout track: “Wrath of the Bastard”
Look, Cave Bastard’s music is rad. They play ultra-doom-y death metal with a solid cosmic scope. But man, if you ever wanted an example of a band whose name and titles yanked us through the door before we heard a note, you’ve got it right here. Between the band, the album title, and the name of proper openers “Anti-Vaxxtermination,” we’re here for these guys no matter what. Just so happens they also rule. Go figure.
Eyemaster, Charcoaled Remains/Festering Slime EP (Caligari Records)
For fans of: Death Breath, Plague Years, Autopsy
Standout track: “Charcoaled Remains”
Oh man, this is tasty. The new EP from Germany’s Eyemaster may only be two songs long, but they’re definitely two songs you need to hear if you’ve got a jones for some old-school death metal. Dripping with distortion and horror-worship, this disc will transport the listener directly back to the good ol’ days, when everything was fucked up and Entombed was still releasing their seminal albums. Just what the doctor ordered.
Darkwoods My Betrothed, Angel of Carnage Unleashed (Napalm Records)
For fans of: Einherjer, Dimmu Borgir, Borknagar
Standout track: “Where We Dwell”
What everyone’s been talking about with Darkwoods My Betrothed is that the band feature Nightwish’s Tuomas Holopainen. But what everyone fails to mention is how weird and wonky these guys are. Usually, a black metal side-project is just a lot of synths and castles; this has a hard theme of paganism being ruined by Christianity, which manifests itself in weird ways. Definitely worth a listen, just don’t show up hoping for a bunch of Tolkien bullshit.
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Want to check out other great new metal releases we’ve spotlighted recently? Good. Here you go.
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Words by Chris Krovatin
