Review 019: Demoterion - Prometheus

Country of origin: Italy
Genre: Melodic Death/ Pagan Metal
Year: 2013
Label: Self-Released


 Today i will talk you of Demoterion, a melodic death/pagan metal band from Abruzzo, an Italian  region that folk metal lovers know as the homeland of Draugr.
What suprise me of this band is that, also if they have been playing togheter only from March 2013 they have already composed an impressive ep such this ''Prometheus".
The Ep is made of 5 songs where the band shows his melodic death     affected by band like Amon Amarth, but also Ensiferum and Varg.
The album is homogeneous and every song is quite good, also if maybe a little bit too little original and some songs are too little elaborated.
The best songs of the ep are Plague From The North, with his chorus that maybe remind me of the chorus from Glorious March by Nordheim, the titlerack Prometheus and God's Servant.
Also the opener Throught The Runes, maybe the worst song in the ep, is not a bad song.
The part these guys have to improve are the lyrics, that are sometimes banal.

Rating: 69/100

Review 017: Beckon - Beckon

Genre: Groove Metal
Country Of Origin: U.K
Year: 2013
Label: Self-Released

Beckon is the self-titled  debut ep by the Scottish Groove Metal Band Beckon.

These guys play a good mix of genres,  inspired by Musshuggah, Lamb of God, Amon Amarth, Nuclear Assault, Morbid Saints and other Thrash, Groove and Death metal major bands.

The tracks are an explosive tribute to the best groove, thrash and melodic death metal that we can find around the Metal scene. Explosive, brutal but even melodic.

Good riffs, inspired (as I told before) by the best musicians and bands in these musical genres; good vibrate and growling voices, performing these heavy tracks very good.

In particular I liked very much the “dirty ape” ’s solo that  reminded me Dark tranquility and Amon Amarth’s solos…I love that heavy but also melodic power solo. Very good job indeed to this band.

If you have listened this demo Let's wait for their first full-lenght, if you haven't do it yet, i suggest you to listen to it.

Rate: 80/100

(the e.p is available here https://soundcloud.com/beckonmetal-1)

Review 015: Banned From Hell - Nightmare

Genre: Melodic Death Metal

Country of Origin : Italy

Year: 2012

Label: Self realesed

Italian death metal scene presents different bands known all over the world like Fleshgod Apocalypse  or Cadaveric Crematorium, but it has a lot of unknown or emerging bands who are working hard and looking  for the success. This is our case today ‘cause I'm going to review Nightmare, the first ep from a young italian melodic death metal band form Florence Banned From Hell, released in 2012.

“Banned form Hell”'s style is a perfect mix between death metal's brutality, melodic keyboard and guitar riffs.

It begin with “Overture”,a short instrumental song who prepare us to the “symphonic  brutality” of the rest of the album, and particularly to the second track “Hate”. This song's lyrics are about violence, suffering and, obviously, hate.

The third track is “Killing in cold blood”. It is about a hitman and his jobs.

The EP continues with “Gunshot”. This track speaks of a man who discover a river full of death bodies in wartimes . Then, he will be taken by some soldiers to be killed. It is the most melodic song of the EP.

“Nightmare” is the fifth and last track. This has been my favourite track of the whole EP. I liked everything of this track: his guitar rif, his keyboard solo, his bass line.

This is a very good EP, but i didn't like very much the lyrics: i found them all the same (except for the last track). In addition, the use of English isn't perfect and there are some structural mistakes.

Vote:74/100

Review 006: Frozen Hell - Rise! (2013)

Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Country Of Origin: Italy
Year: 2013
Label: Self-Released

For some reason i don't understand only death metal bands reach me for a review.
Indeed today I'll talk you about Frozen Hell an Italian melodic death metal band.
This guys play a really energic swedish melodeath metal with sometime, classic metal riffs.
Forzen Hell released in 2013 an ep called RIse!,the one i will talk about, with six solid song and one intro.
The opener Useless Memories shows what the band is able to do, it's a classical melodeath song with some really good moments.
Face me is the most aggressive song in the ep, really good.
The title-track use some not really original guitar part but the song appear really solid because of the great refrain, that will remain for a long time on your mind.
This song is followed by Interrupted and Unti the day break, two good song with great melodic moment. Until the day break remaind me in some moment of viking metal, expecially the vocals.
The ep is brought to the end by Pursuit of Death, a medley with to Amon Amarth song Pursuit of Death and Death on FIre
Maybe these guys don't invent nothing but they play an honest melo-death metal, perfect for the moment when you are angry, and they've done in this ep their work in a good way.
 
Rating:78/100

 https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=574867809210887&set=pb.507832359247766.-2207520000.1373540685.&type=3&theater

Review 003: Otono - Ghosts of Smoke (2008)

Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Country Of Origin: U.S.A
Year: 2008 
Label: Self-released

Sometimes a band in the first album don't find his own identity, this is,in part, the case of the band i'll talk you about today.
Otoño are a Californian band, formed by the guitarists Bangulo and Eldred and the bassist/vocalis
t Angel, that released in 2008 their first, and for the moment unique, album, Ghosts Of Smoke.
The album is really diverse, too much diverse, there are some Melodic (Gothic) Death Metal songs,inspired by Paradise Lost and the British Death/Doom, a Brutal Death Metal song, some Modern Thrash Metal songs, and a lot of instrumental songs, and it can fluster the listener.
It's really a pity 'cause there are some very good songs and a lot of ideas.
The best moments in the album are the songs where the band shows his Melodeath part like Ghosts of Smoke an aggressive song with a really cold riff, Cannibal Jesus, TIll Dark, the true highlight of the album, a melodic song with synths and Under a Gray Autumn Sky,a song with a big instrumental part.
But also the instrumental The Omen, the aggressive Bone Crusher, a brutal death metal song and the powerful Can't Hide are really good songs.
The album is ended by two instrumental songs, in my opinion fillers.
In conclusion the album is good,but too diverse and with too much fillers, and it's clearthat this band has a really big potential.
Maybe the growl is a little bit too dry
 
Rating: 79/100