reviews g

Goat Semen - “Demo”
(Peru, Devils Arts Productions, Black Metal, 2003)

This tape arrived to me in bad shape but after some engineering I’ve seceded in making it as new well excepting the pro printed plastic case of the tape with those cool inverted crucifixes, he he. Coming to music this is a mixture of black and death metal all played at high speed. This is the band of Lord Levifer which also has the project Levifer and is more into black metal than his other band which is labeled as black metal. Goat Semen (cool name) kicks ass on this demo which is a re-release of the original demo from 2000 + some bonus songs. I can see the easiness of playing this kind of music for this band and the pleasure to do it. This is recommended for all the death/black metal maniacs. The best band from Peru I’ve listened so far in this extreme genre.

Contact: Devilsartprod@hotmail.com
Playing time: about 30 min.

Review by Cătălin Carlaonţ

Goatpenis - “Semen 1992 – Anno Domini”
(Brazil, Infernus Rex, Raw Black Metal, 2004)

As the title implies, this is not a new recording from Anti-Human Terrorists Goatpenis, but a 1992 demo that has remained unreleased up 'til now. As one would expect from a 1992 demo, this has a filthy rehearsal tape sound quality, which has far too much treble; the cymbals pretty much drown most other instruments out during the fast parts. On the whole though, the tempo is slightly slower than their later material; instead “Semen” prefers to lurch menacingly from song to song, Sabboath's evil modulated riffs being punctuated by various sound-bytes concerning death, war and, err, the end of the world. People yet to hear this cult band would be advised to check out their debut CD “Inhumanization”, which has a slightly more ear-friendly production. For fans like me, however, this is a dirty, decayed, filth-encrusted diamond.

Contact: goatpenis@uol.com.br
Playing time: 29:47

Review by Jamie Smith

God - "Hell & Heaven"
(Portugal, Khaeotica Productions, Epic-Viking Metal, 2006)

Damn, when I heard about this band first, I was just dumbfounded: Viking metal from Portugal? According the official biography, two brothers Lăpuşneanu from gloomy Transylvania (Romanian side, of course) have found the band in Lusitanian land and decided not to spend the time on searching for original moniker and took simply and loud name GOD. How it be possible, to sing about the Norsemen onto warm place? But damn, it’s enough to taste the music and all the stereotypes and wrong clichés that has been described above, just fell relentlessly!!! I have to confess I didn’t listen to such original music a long ago!!! GOD just takes away any critics and enchant listener by majestic and magic sounds. Majestic melodic drop us into the depths of ancient world, which was made with the help of mentioned musicians. I can’t say, it’s a Viking metal with pagan touches, because this music remembers some special, “archaic” atmosphere, but has nothing with North herself. Sometimes, keyboard’s passages emphasize pompous and majestic touches in the best traditions of OPERA IX. Yes, exactly! Guys decided to sing on three different languages and used English, Portuguese and Romanian speech. The most prominent song for me is “Barbarian gods” – singed on English, but with strong and expressive Portuguese accent as Fernando’s voice (MOONSPELL). And that charming flute, like battle background, which embodied warriors on the onslaught. Huh, I hear as something ancient awakening into the soul, I feel the call of blood! And next sad track complements the previous song, as the remembrance of that barbaric, but beautiful world... And only one bad thing, I could determine on this great MCD: how the last song start... Hey, what the hell motorcycle’s noise there? Are there Vikings? Not actually and destroy all the atmosphere of antiquity that was mentioned above. It’s only one defect I want to talk about. But as I said, the album just kills and deserves your attention. Hola!

Order: www.khaeotica-productions.com
Playing time: 26:23

Review By Sulpher

Goliard - “Artissimae Tenebrae”
(Ukraine, Griffin Music, Black Metal, 2004)

I picked this CD up in a sale on the off chance; since it was from Ukraine and bands from that country are normally very good. Goliard did not disappoint me in the slightest and gave favourable impressions from the fine artwork which uses paintings from Pieter Bruegal and Hieronymous Bosch, which exude quality the way a photocopied cover and badly drawn logo does not. Originality is not really the name of the game here, since “Artissimae Tenebrae” sounds almost exactly like “In the Nightside Eclipse” era Emperor. There's also a slight flavour of early Astrofaes. The music can be described as technically excellent black metal, with fizzy guitars, fast, precise drum patterns and layers of atmospheric synths (the latter of which seem to drown out the guitars a little bit, but that's a minor quibble).A truly flawless cover of “I am the Black Wizards” crown this release. Fans of the mid 90's Norwegian sound simply must hear this band!

Contact: griffinmusic@ukr.net
Playing time: 35:26

Goreopsy - ¨Intentional Disfiguration¨
(Slovakia, Life Fluid Production, Deathgrind, 2000)

Probably one of the most extreme metal bands ever signed to L.F.Production, Goreopsy, is back with a MCD album that will probably forecasts band new full-lenght.
Although ¨Intentional Disfiguration¨ contains just 5 songs and one intro, I discovered band succesfull recipe! Goreopsy isn't a very technical band, but its constituents tries to find very interesting elementsthat can mahe this CD to have a very interesting final result.
Centered upon the basical death metal element, but filled with slowcore moments too, Goreopsy makes its songs to sound very good and to produce an unique and pleasantly feeling form the first hearing of ¨Intentional Disfiguration¨.
Although Goreopsy doesn't use to much the technical elements, as I've already told you, this slovakian band have found an interesting formula for this mixture of brutal death with grind lines. This material abounds in rhythm changes and devastating bass-guitar attacks, that pass very easy from the brutal tempos to mid or slower moments of extreme metal music.
Band drum section is a very low one although it was realised with the help of a drum machine. But we can find some good blasts too, in tne end the result being an artifficial one evidently!
Singer's vocal tunes are very guttural and with a very low level; and my point of view is that the pig vokills are naturally made and the singer use no fuckin' vocal efects.
I'd like that the whole ensemble made by Goreopsy is very well supported by an impressiev lyrical content, something in the old Carcas way, but with a very bizarre artwork?!
Characterized by aggressive guitaristical riffs, unbelievable bass-guitar hard attacks and inhuman vokills, ¨Intentional Disfiguration¨ prooves to be one of the most important products ever recorded by an australian label.
I can't wait for the beand new album; to see if it will reveal me new elements or new arrangements in band's musical content!

Contact: yoda@vision.net.au
Playing time: 15:46

Review by Litocranius

Gorerotted - “Mutilated in Minutes”
(U.K., Identified by Dental Records, Brutal Death Metal, 2004)

When I received this CD I was a little bit surprised, because I never heard of Identified by Dental Records; but, after a while, Joanna, the head manager of this brutal label told me that Identified by Dental Records is the same home recording with Dead Again Records. So... I remembered having received a Promo CD with 5 tracks, also 5 bands, sent me some time ago by John from Gorerotted. As you can see "Mutilated in Minutes" was republished by this new/old label called Identified by Dental Records, with a brand new artwork and a new mix version. A very good idea in my point of view, especially if we take into consideration that Identified by Dental Records is new on the market. Probably one of the best brutal death metal acts ever recorded in the European U.G., "Mutilated in Minutes" offers us a 9 tracks set in the U.S. brutal death metal way of playing; an impressive volcanic eruption, here we can find well combined guitar solos, cave vokills and an impressive horror series who can make Stephan King trembling to death. Because I consider Gorerotted one of the best bands in the area, you'll probably understand there is no chance to talk about musical influences in this case. As I was told you before the British succeeded to create a deadly and powerful product, an incredible journey in a hallucinating universe filled with serial murderers and sexual maniacs. All these ideas, transposed on a musical background succeed, again, to make me understand why is Gorerotted one of the most appreciated European death metal bands. What was the final result of a so cheered album? They have signed recently a recording deal with one of the most known brutal labels one earth, called Metal Blade; a label who's going to record with Gorerotted a brand new album, "Only tools and corpses". CD artwork is signed by Jake, a fine artist from www.talesfromuranus.com! All these things make "Mutilated in Minutes" to be a cult album, probably one of the best 50 in the brutal death metal history. So... don't hessitate to buy this album re released by Identified by Dental Records, because you'll find it a killer product and without doubt a top one!

Playing time: 26:06

Review by Litocranius

Gorezone - ¨Brutalities of Modern Domination¨
(Germany, Xtreem Music Records/070, Brutal Death Metal, 2009)

What I got here is Death Metal! The Brutal WAY!!! Hailing from Germany, Gorezone is one of the most important extreme death metal bands out there, mostly for their very original way of playing, but for the dedication too! With 2 albums and a promo CD behind, Gorezone participated at the Grind’em All Tour in 2004! Soon after that a new promo CD was settled and they signed a deal with mighty Extreem Music Records from Spain; a deal that saw its fruits in today’s Brutalities of Modern Domination album!
Recorded in different studios with 2 singers in the same time, Brutalities of Modern Domination took over 7 months to be recorded, but the final result is a very good one and it deserves full attention from media and fans side. Including 11 songs this new opus signed Gorezone is for sure band’s best album ever; a step forward in Gorezone’s career, probably for the German extreme death metal area too! Being influenced by the U.S. brutal death metal, Malignancy, Lividiy, Deeds of Flesh, Deaden or Fleshgrind, Gorezone succeed to find the perfect combination in doing something very interesting and well done, but very original too!
Taking influences from the actual world wide situation, the lyrical concept speaks about politics and social criticism: it’s about how power is being used to suppress people, how people are suffering from globalization and finally the mechanisms behind that, as they use to say!
The musical content is very interesting and varied, dealing mostly brutal death metal lines; but we can find here technical parts too, awesome guitar solos, excellent rhythm changes and a core attack metal attitude that left me speechless!
I could say that Gorezone is the German response on Lividity/ Fleshgrind, and that’s for sure a comparison that they should be proud of it. The cover artwork was released by the Italian artist Marco Hasmann, and in my point of view is the perfect image about what we hear for about 45 minutes.
In the end I’d like to say Brutalities of Modern Domination is that album I was looking for since a while; the perfect occasion to hear something of good quality and a band totally devoted to this way of playing!

Contact: markuskruegel@gmx.net
Playing time: 44:19

Review by Litocranius

Gothërfall - “Blacksphere Architecture”
(Canada, Self released, Sympho Black Metal, 2006)

Gotherfall is a newborn capella (saluting from Quebec, Canada) which decided to make an own name under the wings of modern metal trend. The band have mixed different elements of extreme music, even those, which are far from each other, and as the result we have got „Blacksphere Architecture“ – piece of quality recorded, but souless sound: meta black metal (yeah, that’s right – the quality is on the very high level, as sound, so killer booklet), as the band described themselves, is not a black metal in whole. It’s a syntheses of rapidly riffs, powered by massive symphonic elements and keyboards, which even too enough for me, as a die-hard metaller. “Glamour” gothic elements are dominated there. Sometimes, the music sounds in the vein of new Emperor, sometimes in the vein of Susperia/Dimmu Borgir, but the orchestral paintings and experimental ways shall be determined during listening to all the album. If you like the trend stuff like Cradle of Filth, Dimmu Borgir and the Kovenant, for sure, you shall piss from this album, which was made with all the canons of “popular” metal music and be the absolutely masterpiece for you. But as for me, it’s better to listen to raw and ugly BM antihuman attack, than this commercial art for widely auditory.

Contact: www.gotherfall.com
Playing time: 60:12

Review By Sulpher

Gothmog - ¨A Step in the Dark¨
(Spain, Xtreem Music Records/ 057, Melodic Black Metal)

Hailing from Alicante, Spain, Gothmog really impressed me from the first hearing with its awesome melodically black metal music; something that I was searching since a few years, and probably the best band signed to Xtreem Music besides: Avulsed and Vidres a la Sang! Founded a few years ago, in the summer of 2005, under the name Torn Asunder, this band started very soon to rehearse and it played the very first gigs soon after that! After some personal changes and some live appearances they have started to work on band’s first album A Step in the Dark, and very soon they entered Fernando Asensi's studio in Valencia, and so the first opus was recorded!
This first official material was released in January 2009 by Xtreem Music Records, the national label, and it reveals us a very, very, good black metal band; a black metal very well combined with melodically lines and with some extremely intelligent heavy metal phases, a very interesting musical content that seems to be closer to Dimmu Borgir, Immortal or Emperor. In my point of view this musical content has more to do with Catamenia or Empyrium, but the musical influences are so varied today that leaves no space for some other comments.
Gothmog is for sure the biggest surprise coming from Xtreem Music roaster, a black metal gang that knows fuckin’ well how to play this kind of extreme metal, a name that very soon will tell much more things that it does right now! I think that some other words are useless if you don’t get this awesome material as soon as possible; a chance to see how a Spanish black metal band combines aggressively a raw black metal attitude with a lot of melodically lines and very skilled heavy metal moments, something well emphasized by musical lines that brings in front of us a lot of interludes made by guitar in the purest Spanish old vein. If you imagine how a melodically black heavy metal corida sounds like, than I assure you that this is the most important release I hared this year! And if you’ll try to add a vocal score a la Immmortal, and sometimes Dimmu Borgir, you have the whole content of an awesome material signed Gothmog!
Keep on eye on this combo, buy all its materials and keep spreading the word on Gothmog; it really deserves!

Contact: booking@gothmog.es
Playing time: 41:44

Review by Litocranius

Grand Belial´s Key - “Kosherat”
(U.S.A., Drakkar Productions, Black Metal, 2005)

After two great full-length albums, i had big expectations on GBK´s new album. Production is excellent and songs are excellent, things i also listened care was job of new members, new drummer and new vocalist. Because ex-member Cazz Grant did splendid job in GBK, and so do new members too. As two first albums, Kosherat doesn´t bore, and last listening many times once more. Music is variable and original, song structures are interresting. Riffs are not typical, in addition to Black metal you can hear influences from Death Metal in music too, and even some Punk influences.
Last two songs are Chaos88 covers, and i liked them too. I cannot name any favourite songs over others, because all songs are excellent. If you don´t have new album already, get this masterpiece.

Contact: http://grandbelialskey.cjb.net/
www.drakkar666.com
Playing time: 61:18

Review by Sami Makkonen

Grave Desecrator - “Cult of Warfare and Darkness”
(Brazil, Ketzer Records, Black Metal, 2004)

More old style black metal from the depths of the Brazilian rain forests, this time courtesy of Grave Desecrator. Two tracks of totally primitive, distortion-soaked noise played by face painted thugs with more spikes and bulletbelts than the front line at the Somme. The first track "Faces of Apocalyptic Battle" is a brutal thrash track in the classic Sarcofago vein, and the B side "Holocaust" is a huge reverberating wall of sound with one of the most wicked choruses you are likely to hear. For fans of bloodlust and perversion - this is essential stuff!

Contact: gravedesecrator@hotmail.com

Review by Jamie Smith

Graven - “The Shadows Eternal Call”
(Germany, Undercover Records, Old School Black Metal, 2005)

Darkthrone, Mayhem, Immortal. “Under a Funeral Moon”, “De Mysteriis dom Sathanas”, “Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism”. “Natassja in Eternal Sleep”, “Freezing Moon”, “Unholy Forces of Evil”. If this appeal to you then you’ll love this release by Graven if you are seeking for original unheard, revolutionary etc, bullshit then search somewhere else!
This release from Graven timeless and circular, “Raven’s Circle” the first song is in perfect correlation with the last “The Shadows Eternal Call”, and if you listen to this again and again you’ll find yourself spinning through a dark vortex not knowing where it starts and if it ever ends! Great mid-tempo perfectly balanced songs are to be found like: “Swarm of the Night”, “From a Distant Past”. Truly recommended for true black metal fans, also this comes with a crystal clear production so you can fell the entire atmosphere created by these howling wolves! I can’t write more because all that is to be found here can’t be criticized being known that all has been already said by the first sentences of this review. Cult!

Contact: www.undercover-records.de
Playing time: 37:24

Review by Cătălin Carlaonţ

Grimness 69 - ¨illHeaven Hells¨
(Italy, Xtreem Music Records/ 064, Grindcore, 2009)

As you can see this is probably the first grind-core metal band under the banner of Xtreem Music; and, as usual in the Xtreem Music roaster, a very good combo, skilled, talented and full of promising things from now on!
Although this is band’s second effort since now, illHeaven Hells shows us that we have to deal with a very experienced extreme metal gang; a name that represents very good the Italian underground scene in the latest years!
About this band called Grimness 69 I’d like you to know that it started 8 years ago from the ashes of the old Hardcore/ Grind combo Vallium, and the first name of this metal act was Grimness. As they love to say the main influences come from bands like Anal Cunt, 7 Minutes of Nausea or Gore Beyond Necropsy, all these being mixed with a dose of nihilist speed punk a la Rupture, Nihilist and a few others!
The first releases where some splits E.P. with: Groinchurn, Viscera and Holocausto Cannibal, the last one from Portugal. After a appearance at the Czech Obscene Extreme metal Fest in 2003, the first line-up change brought in band J.C. Hooker, a drummer with many good ideas and with a death/ black influence extremely appreciated by the other band constituents.
After a mini-tour with Polish grinders Deformed, they decided to change band’s name and soon after that Grimness 69 opened some live acts for Spanish gore masters Avulsed with the occasion of their European tour in 2005!
In the end of the year the first official material was released and it was called Grimness Avenue 69; and the band signs a deal with the Spanish Grotesque Productions for the release of this first full length album out in November. 2007 seems to be a very important year in band’s career, with many shows across the whole Europe together with: Pungent Stench, Gorerotted and Sinister, plus a deal with Alkemist Fanatix Europe as a manager!
Recorded during October/ November 2007, illHeaven Hells will very soon be released on 2 different labels: Embrace My Funeral Records for the United States and all the south and central American market and Copro Records for the worldwide release. Soon after that a new European tour was done together with Inhume and Disgorge, this one being the first occasion to present the new member Dr. Faustus. This year band passed a serious line-up problem, with the depart of former member The Pig who was very soon replaced by Nerve, singer of Deadly Strain and Anal Disgorge, and in the same breath The Fool (guitarist in Motherly Sin) joins in the band at the bass guitar. After the first good responses on illHeaven Hells the Spanish Xtreem Music licenses this same album worldwide and the band decides to support again this new re-release with another tour with Avulsed and Emeth.
As we can see things are looking great for this combo, and I’m 100% that we are going to hear soon about this Italian act; illHeaven Hells being for sure a big surprise for me, probably one of the most interesting albums ever in this kind.
In the end I’d say that Grimness 69 brought me something very special, like never before; and I realised that illHeaven Hells is a unique material of its kind, the perfect choice for a die hard grind-core freak like me!
Through that over 30 minutes of grind-core massacre some things changed inside me, and I realised, again, that this was the first occasion to see how a so good material could merge with my feelings and thoughts.
The final result of this communion has liberated my own demons, long lost forgotten!

Contact: jchooker@tiscali.it
Playing time: 32:21

Review by Litocranius

Griftegård -¨ Solemn. Sacred.Severe¨
(Sweden, Van Records/ 32, Doom Metal, 2009)

Recently I started a new collaboration with a German label called Van Records. The first so called ¨ fruit¨ of this cooperation is this CD signed Griftegård; a band that I was surprised of, mostly for its doom metal playing manner!
I’d say that band’s musical way seems to be closer to that funeral doom we are talking in the latest years, this time with a very interesting combination between the doom elements and an occult rock attitude; probably one of the first combos playing this genre I’m listening too. The vocal score is a normal one, but the musical content reminds me about Mourning Beloveth from Ireland; a musical whole that combines very good some elements, I’d say, taken from Deep Purple’s creations!
Consisting in only 6 tracks, ¨ Solemn. Sacred.Severe¨ brings in front of us a doom metal musical content that I like even if it don’t have guttural vokills; and all the time with that Mourning Beloveth attitude, but very original in the end! Extremely heavy and slow this material makes me a very good impression, being in the same time depressive but aggressive too; I really don’t know if you get it in the end, but it brought me so many emotions that I have no words to describe it.
But I’ll let you know what is all about with this material because honestly is very hard for me to describe the things I like so much! So…, funeral doom metal combined damn well with an occult rock attitude, mainly influenced by Deep Purple, with some poppy elements and some core metal attacks on guitar and bass guitar, this is the musical content offered by mighty Griftegård on its last opus called ¨ Solemn. Sacred. Severe¨!
In my opinion this is one of the most impressive albums I’ve listened in the latest years or so, a band extremely skilled, a musical content full of so good things that left me speechless for almost 50 minutes!
Try this new masterpiece and you won’t be disappointed by this band signed to Van Records!!!

Contact: sven.dinninghoff@van-gbr.de
Playing time: 45:24

Review by Litocranius

Gruesome Malady - "Infected With Virulent Seed"
(India, Grindcore, Bizarre Leprous Records, 2004)

As you can probably figure we got here another exotic band, because Gruesome Malady comes from far India. "Infected with Virulent Seed" is a 10 tracks Grindcore metal album, with an ordinary lyrical concept use by almost all Bizarre Leprous Records bands. Still from the beginning of this review I'd like to tell you that Gruesome Malady is a band who had the most sickest and inhuman vocal score I ever heard until today. Unfortunately for this Indians this is the main attraction point of this CD, because, generally speaking, the whole musical content is a very lousy one. Probably amongst Lymphatic Phlegm, Gruesome Malady is one of the weakest Grindcore metal bands I met in my entire career as a metal head. However, if you going to like this CD you'll find some interesting metal parts played by band guitar player, but that isn't something special.” Infected with Virulent Seed" cove artwork is something in a very tight connection with Gruesome Malady lyrical content, but its picture is too childish for my taste. If you'll buy this album it's probably to find some interesting elements hat can make you like it more than I do in this moment. So..., if you're into Grindcore metal, filled with lots of porn-gore lyrics, and you're a real collector of brutal metal, than get this product as soon as possible.

Review by Litocranius

Gun Barrel - “Battle tested”
(Germany, Limb Music Productions, Hard Rock, 2003)

From the battlefield Gun Barrel coes with this "Battle tested" masterpiece. Coming under the pure "Sex drugs and rock’n’roll" they are trying to convince us that real hard’n’heavy hasn’t died. With influences from Motorhead and having the same attitude they bring twelve unrelenting songs of the highest quality. Every song here goes straight to the core. They don’t try to fool the listener with "highly elaborated songs" but they are creating straight music which appeals to the real hard’n’heavy listeners. You will have some surprises too like the pipes from the song "My last ale" or the choir from the song "Death Kneel Dance” if you don’t have this yet go to the nearest store and ask for it. I think that they are killers when they are playing live, one of the best hard rock albums that I ever received for review!

Contact: info@limb-music.de
Playing time: 52:38

Review by Cătălin Carlaonţ

Günther Schroth - “Barcode Music”
(Germany, Archegon, Experimental Barcode Music, 2000)

This particular release is an original one, until this CD, through my wanderings in the vast territory that mankind calls music I’ve never came across a release that uses barcode generated sounds to create music. Citing from www.archegon.de the label’s website of Günther Schroth “in each and every barcode there is hidden a melody or a sound structure strongly marked by the product on which the barcode sticks” starting from here the artist has found a new and original territory to explore. The result may sound cacophonic to a standard music listener but if you will let aside the preconceptions of music must sound you will find an interesting and unique domain to explore. Personally I’ve given to this album quite some spins until I finally decided to write something about it. The music can be labeled in parts as power electronics also, look especially for the song “EAN 13 exklusiv”/ ”Im Scanner verborgen” the third and the sixth one to be featured on the CD. Some fake harmonies can be found in the song “EAN 13 ultra” for some seconds you can even think that you are listening to some fake jazz, then again you are swallowed in the barcode music warp. On the seventh and eight song you can hear a combination between barcode improvisations and vinyl/voice improvisations. On “Vinyl-Scan” the sounds are taken from the vinyl that covers a CD and they are mixed again with barcode generated sounds, the result is somewhere between power electronics and IDM without the alembicated rhythms while “Voice-Scan” is a mix between a female voice (Fraziska Quandt) and the barcode generated sounds, the atmosphere on this song is a eerie and overall it sounds a bit like a Diamanda Gallas/Sui Generis Umbra. As a conclusion if you can bare John Zorn’s extreme musical endeavors Günther Schrots’s music can appeal to you. Overall it is an intriguing CD to listen to bringing you fresh sounds that were not used before, if you feel like discovering new sounds write an e-mail to the address that you will find on the website.

Contact: www.archegon.de
Playing time: 63:30

Review by Cătălin Carlaonţ (09/07)