Burnt By The Sun – “Heart Of Darkness” released August 18, 2009 on Relapse This is certainly the year for classic “metalcore” bands to resurface with new material. Coalesce and Brutal Truth both released excellent new material this year (and also on Relapse, no less), and the much-anticipated third album from this NJ quartet is no exception. You’ll not find any of the faux brutality that plagues our metallic world here, nor will you hear the kinda goofy lyrics (clever though they were) that BBTS would occasionally employ in the past. No, this is a band that has sounded [...read more]

Rating: 4/5

A quick listen introduces mostly chaos, but revisits reveal the intricate shadows to the truly tenacious. This is the storm before the apocalypse.

Beatallica – “Masterful Mystery Tour” released August 4, 2009 on Oglio Entertainment At last the world gets what it’s wanted for years, but has always been afraid to ask: a mashup band that blends the worlds of Metallica and The Beatles (actually, they formed eight years ago and this is their second LP, but that’s beside the point). The band is amazingly adept at innovating with the established material, especially considering the potential for utter lameness. Rather than simply ape these bands, or sing the lyrics of one over the music of the other, they amalgamate songs from both [...read more]

DevilDriver – “Pray For Villains” released July 14, 2009 on Roadrunner If there’s one thing this band has going for them, it’s ramping up the heaviness with each album, playing faster and tighter without sacrificing the hooks that still make them accessible. Recorded, mixed and mastered by Logan Mader (ex-Machine Head, ex-Soulfly)–who also worked on the recent Gojira and Cavalera Conspiracy albums–it thrashes as hard as it grooves with a full, clear production. Dez’s voice is maturing well, his rich growl enunciating better than ever (and spouting lyrics with 50% less swearing). Though it may be their strongest album [...read more]

sunn O))) – “Monoliths & Dimensions” released July 7, 2009 on Southern Lord Everything the Anderson-O’Malley duo has created leads to this point in their evolution, the seventh studio effort in a decade-long career. In addition to frequent collaborators Oren Ambarchi and vocalist Attila Csihar (Mayhem), there is a breadth of guest musicians throughout the album. A short list includes composer Eyvind Kang, Julian Priester (Sun Ra, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock), and Dylan Carlson (Earth), but there are around thirty in all. On the surface, one may think this daunting enterprise too unwieldy for mere mortals to control. I [...read more]

Jungle Rot – “What Horrors Await” released May 19, 2009 on Napalm Metal, like all music, evolves over time, but there are always stalwarts who adhere to the past. Jungle Rot is a good example of no-frills, old-school American death metal in the vein of Obituary, Deicide, and Six Feet Under. However, this band has built their career almost exclusively on the atrocities of war. This is the brutal music of front-line grunts–mouths full of grit, spit, and blood–unapologetically marching ever forward. There vocals are well enunciated, so the full effect of their music is driven that much deeper, [...read more]

Halford – “Resurrection Remastered” released May 3, 2009 on Metal God Entertainment Rob Halford endured some highs and lows in his years apart from Judas Priest. The 2wo experiment was pretty uneven and although Fight was more of a return to form, it was not until he assembled his eponymous band that the Metal God again aspired to full potential. This is the re-release of their debut album, featuring the tracklisting that had been previously available exclusively through iTunes. The first half is unchanged from the original track listing, but the second half includes the two Japanese bonus tracks [...read more]

Cannibal Corpse – “Evisceration Plague” Released February 3, 2009 on Metal Blade Cannibal Corpse is arguably the most controversial American metal band. It appears as though this is diminishing, though. You won’t find “Fucked With a Knife” (although track 8 references crotch-stabbing) or “I Cum Blood” on this album. Just standard gore lyrics which contrast with their earlier material. Musically, however, it’s still basically the same band. It’s fun, simple, straightforward death metal. Depending on your taste, this could be good or bad. I’m not a huge fan of it, though I don’t want to see them mimicking modern [...read more]

Razor of Occam – “Homage to Martyrs” Released March 17, 2009 on Metal Blade With a lineup sporting two members of Deströyer 666 and the original drummer of DragonHeart (now DragonForce), Razor of Occam already has some pretty damn good credentials. After a long wait (6 years) since their last release (an EP titled “Pillars of Creation”), we finally have a debut album from these blackened thrashers. They very effectively combine thrashened black metal in the vein of Absu with classic straight up thrash like Slayer. In fact, lead guitarist Ian Gray has a style that sounds nearly identical to [...read more]

Paria – “The Barnacle Cordious” Released March 17, 2009 on Blackmarket Activities Metal Archives claims that Paria is a metalcore band and nothing else. I would beg to differ. They are definitely metal, and they often have a ‘core aspect to them, but they also have influences from mathcore bands like The Dillinger Escape Plan and Protest the Hero. The majority of this album is complex, hectic, unrelenting metallic hardcore. However, they throw in two tracks (4 and 9) that are instrumental and sound almost indistinguishable from Pelican (both also incorporate some piano, an interesting touch). Personally, these are my two favorite [...read more]