Written by: Blackie Skulless
Just before the world was taken by storm with a pandemic, Skumstrike blew my mind with their comprehensive brand of black/speed/punk. On 2020’s Execution Void EP of only fifteen minutes, they managed to sell me instantaneously. With a newer love for extreme music, I found the Canadian duo to touch close to the powerviolence side of things due to the unforgiving delivery. Now, they’ve solidified this into the form of full length with Deadly Intrusions. The debut album is every bit as intense as what we were given before, with just a slight hint of clarity amongst the extremely coarse finish. The noisy gradient over the guitars and borderline fuzzed vocal delivery is still ever so present, coating the metal oriented passages with the blackest tint. But the leads themselves stand out higher than they ever have before, be it the solos or the riffs. This is helpful, especially because some of the songs move right into the next, further bridging the already overwhelming songs.
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Written by: Blackie Skulless
Since the band’s earliest demo at the crack of 2019, I’ve been following every Undeath output that gets tossed out at a close range due to the band’s immediate ear for outstanding writing in the death metal genre. 2020’s Lesions Of A Different Kind would take the structural brutality of the demos and bring them to a refreshing light. This quickly cemented the New York quintet as one of my favorites in modern death metal. There’s no sign of this discontinuing with the latest, entitled It’s Time…To Rise From The Grave. Fitting the imagery of the name and artwork, Undeath sees their second full-length as a step forward in technical tactic while strongly maintaining their ground in memorable riffing. Never is the muddy and unforgiving bottom lost with harsh and disgusting tones that draw the guitars as deep as the guttural vocals. 
Written by: Chuck
“How did we get here” is the question I often asked myself when listening to The Human Exemplar, the superb third release from Massachusetts’s post/progressive band Warm. It’s not that I suddenly lost my grip on reality, rather, the band was just extremely adept at transitioning seamlessly through multiple complimentary styles in a way that allowed me to drift along without questioning the conviction of their direction. Indeed, the appeal was that throughout the entire album each stylistic reference felt deeply authentic. From the heavy grunge syrup, the stoner riffs, the long progressive instrumental sections, the “post” feel to it, and even the occasional Neurosis-worship, it all feels right and it all rings true. Throughout all of it, the band never strays too far in any one direction, or stays too long before confidently pulling the themes together and moving along. This all got me super stoked to be able to premier their track "Time & Blood" off their new album The Phos Nimitta. Listen below! 
Almost a year ago, Desolation Plains' fantastic Sword of Hailstorm was drafted into service as the focal point for our inaugural INTO THE DUNGEON column. Due exclusively to, well, my own laziness, this proved to be the only entry in said series. In retrospect, that's a damn shame, considering how many stellar exemplars of the genre I checked out exclusively on the basis of really fuckin' enjoying Sword of Hailstorm. I listen to it frequently to this day.
Needless to say, I'm pleased and honored to present here today a new track from Desolation Plains' forthcoming Kingdomfall. Check it out below! As always, we'll meet ye on the other side. 
Written by: Blackie Skulless
Before tearing into this monster, I need to address something. Belgium’s black/speed metallers Bütcher are an enigma that took me a hot minute to dig, but the deeper I went, the more unique they became. This is mostly due to the fact that they’re so unapologetically ridiculous that I almost want to classify them as a parody band. This thinking is coming from the song titles themselves, the stage names, the intentionally nonsensical spelling of words, the crude sexuality crossed with Satan everywhere, and just the fact that Bütcher wears every influence on their sleeve, refusing to even try to cover it up. This breathes Judas Priest, Motörhead, Bathory, and Venom all in one sentence. Despite all of this being pretty damn common, the fact that the songwriting is so astronomically good, blending so much together so smoothly is what gives this its standout charm. |
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