Review 014: Folk Metal Jacket - Our War Has Begun

Genre: Folk Metal
Country Of Origin: Italy
Year: 2012
Label: Self-Released

Today I'll talk you about the first demo from the italian Folk Metal band Folk Metal Jacket.
This band, born in 2009, has published this  self-procuded demo, Our War Has Begun in 2012 and an ep Spill this Album, published by Moonlight Records, an interesting label that follow really closely the italian folk metal scene, this year.
After a good intro, there is the opener Faunalia, that immediatly shows all the characteristics of the band, indeed it's a funny folk metal song inspired by band such Finntroll and Trollfest( it's also remind me of the Canadian band Nordheim), with some really interesting banjo parts.
Every song in the demo is really  interesting: Mushrooms with its good chorus, Full of Beer Rivers, It's Not Easy To Be Green and the last song Alice In Paganland, maybe my favourite one of the demo, are all good exemple of Folk Metal but the thing that surprise me is that this young guys has created a personal sound, also due to the use of the banjo.
The lyrics are  usually funny celebration of alcool, or about war and parties.
 Eventually Our War Has Begun is a good demo that show us a good band that may have an interesting future.

Rating: 73/100

Review 013: Gravehuffer – Blasphemusic

Genre: Thrash/Death Metal
Country Of Origin: U.S.A
Year: 2012
Label: Reality Impaired



Today I’ll review the new album of the American band GraveHuffer. Though they have some good ideas into the new thrash metal wave of these lastas years, I have to talk something about this album. Among all it is a “good” production, but is infected by some important points: they mix and rush many genres and influences in all 14 tracks, going out with what is “the band’soul itself, his interface, his idea of music and his way to do it”; in particular they mix with Thrash, Sludge, some Blackened influence (with screams and some riffs) and Death. For exemple: “Reacharound Rambo” is most influenced by major bands like IMMORTAL, Bathory and Celtic Frost. “Unthinking unity” is influenced by Opeth and Celtic Frost’s prog death riffs, chorus and verses. “Festering”, “Into the Crypts of Rays”, “Tomb of Hercules” and “God forgot us” are influenced by Mastodon, Periphery and Monstrosity, their Sludge metal and some Brutal Death come out directly when I Listened these tracks. At least, “Dumpster Baby”, “Christ Complex”, “Gutsick” and “Lucifer’s Crown” are influenced by Vio-lence, Artillery, Sacred Reich, Death, Morbid Saint, Exhorder, Obituary and so on. At the end, I say that they could have some good productions if they just stopped and focused only on one genre. By what I listened to, I recommend to keep doing Death Metal, but improving the flat growl they used, maybe re-listening to death and opeth much more times.

Rating: 56/100

Review 012: Ergot - Empty Waters down the myst

Genre: Black metal/ Dark ambient

Country of origin: Italy

Year:2013

Label: Self-released

Have you ever listened to a black metal album? I'm sure you did it at list once before today. So, you should know that feeling who allow your mind to fly across the great Scandinavian woods of conifers.

Perfect, now, forget it, because this album will allow your mind not to fly but to sail the seven seas.

Ergot is an Italian one man black metal band from Trieste, Italy. His lyrics, contrary to the classic black metal bands, especially speak about the sea and the life connected to it.

His first ep, “Empty waters down the myst”, is composed by 5 tracks. It starts with an amazing dark ambient instrumental intro called “Wrecked away”. The second track is called “In love we trust”, but the lyrics contain all but love. This song is about a satanic rite violence and curses made by the protagonist of the track. This song presents classic black metal sounds with classic black metal lyrics, so we can describe this one like a classic black metal song.

The third track, “Veils” is a dark ambient instrumental song with an interesting electronic sound.

The fourth track is “Opening the gate of reality”. Sincerely this song has reminded me Amon Amarth's “Twilight of the Thunder God” under a lot of viewpoints, but it isn't a bad song.

The fifth track “Lost Wisdom”, well-done cover cover of Burzum, is a bonus track.

Just to wrap up this is a good black metal album, but nothing of really original or innovative.

Vote: 71/100

Review 011: Kanseil - Tzimbar Bint (2013)

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

Over the past few years in Italy Folk Metal has achieved a big success, so a lot of band started playing this genre, sometimes with great results.
Bands like Folkstone, Furor Gallico, Draugr and Elvenking have acquited themselves like of the best metal band in Europe.
Besides them a lot of young interesting bands, in this country, are trying to emerging, bands like Evendim, Folkentroll or Folk Metal Jacket.
Today i want to talk you about another interesting young band: Kanseil,a band from Fregona, near Treviso, and in particular 'bout their demo Tzimbar Bint.
These guys in their songs talk about their land and his histroy, in particular 'bout the Cimbri.
The demo consists of two good folk songs: Lo Spirito Della Notte, with his spoken in italian, and Dar Bald Hat Geheft Zo Reda and of three Folk Metal songs: Genius Loci, that starts with some fantastic bagpipes, played in the way of Folkstone, to remember than something from Waylander, Mazharol a really good song with a fantastic chorus and Tzimbar Bint, the only song sang in italian,that without doubt is the best moment of the demo, and maybe one of the best songs of the genre released this year.
I think the demo confirm that the band is the Next Big Thing of the Italian Folk Metal
Rating: 79/100

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Review 010: Thunder And Lightning - In Charge Of The Scythe (2013)

Genre: Power Metal
Country Of Origin: Germany
Year: 2013
Label:  Hammersound

Power metal is one of my favourite genres of metal but only today for the first time i can talk you about an album of this genre.
Indeed today i will review In Charge of the Scythe, fourth album from Thunder and Lightning, an interesting band from Berlin formed in 2004.
In Charge Of The Scythe is released three years after Dimension, the previous album from these guys.
This band plays  an interesting modern power metal with thrash influences, expecially  in some rithmic parts.
In Charge sound like a really solid album, with a lot of good songs like the opener      Boostershot, a really powerful with a good chorus you have to sing loud, The Unborn Truth ,another solid and funny song, the titletrack, a fantastic song with a  dark feeling, or Soldier's Tired Eyes, an aggressive song with a rabid chorus, but every song in this album is good.
About lyrics, In Charge Of The Scythe is a  concept album about a girl who kills The Death  and takes over his duties.
In conclusion i think this album will be apprecieted by all the power metal fans.

Rating: 80/100

Review 009: Skinlepsy - Condemning the Empty Souls (2013)

Genre: Thrash/Death Metal
Country of Origin: Brazil
Year: 2013
Label: Shinigami Records

Skinlepsy are a brazilian band formed in San Paolo in 2001.
Before the album i'll talk you about today, Condemning The Empty Souls, released on April 2013 by Shinigami Records, they only released a self-produced ep Reign of Chaos in 2003, but every member in the band has played in other band from the brazilian underground scene.
The band plays a really aggressive mix of death and thrash metal that they define Brutal Thrash Metal and their biggest influences are Sepultura and Slayer.
Every song is quite good but in my opinion Crucial Words, with its fantastic (in someway also melodic) guitar part(in someway melodic) and is good refrain and Alientation a song that will stay in your mind for a while.

Rating: 72/100

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Review 008: Sideburn - IV Monument (2012)

Genre: Hard Rock
Country Of Origin: Sweden
Year: 2012
Label: Transubstans Records

In recent years in Sweden a lot of band started playing traditional rock/metal.
This is the case for Sideburn, an hard rock/doom band born in the Northern part of Sweden in 1998.
These guys have already released three full-length before the album i will talk you about,  IV Monument, published on 3 October last year by the swedish label Transubstans Records.
The band plays an interesting hard rock influenced by bands such Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, and by the stoner/doom metal.
Since the opener Diamonds the band shows his attributes and influences and the album  move forward without really bad moments.
The performance of every band member is really good, in particular, stand out the singer Jani Kataja.
It's not easy to me to signal the best songs in the album because the medium album level is high, but maybe they are the obscure ballad Crossing The Line, the evil doom/hard rock song The Saviour and the single Bring Down the Rain.
Despite these facts we have to say that the album is not faultless, maybe some songs are a little bit too long or repetitive.

Rating: 75/100

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