Record Reviews

Israeli extreme metal band Arallu returns with a new version of the track “Battleground”.

While you can find descriptions of this band as blackened dissonant death or even avant-garde something-or-other, the truth is that no matter which direction a humble extreme metal wordsmith may choose to wank-off in, fans of death metal will dig this hard. When it comes to narrative, let Sydney-siders Golgothan Remains do the storytelling.

Canadian deathcore group A Scar for the Wicked’s album “Acolythus” is tight, well-written and consistent.

Rvkkvs serves up Kiwi death grind on the band’s debut album. This is extreme metal, and the tracks are short, but it’s anything but one-dimensional. It’s glorious stuff.

Terrifically dark Finnish progressive post-metal on new EP by Besra.

Erik Lazaroff & Hökarna are back with an excellent second album. It’s rock sung in Swedish. It’s more denim than leather.

A sensational debut album by Elliott Crafoord’s melodic black metal project Unhallowing.

Former Torch singer Dan Dark releases debut solo album.

Swedish power metal band HammerFall is back with its 13th studio album. If catchy and bombastic power metal is your thing, HammerFall’s new album will not disappoint.

Old-school Florida death metal from Sweden. Finspång’s finest, Open Surgery, serves up glorious meat-and-potatoes basement death metal on its new album.

This is music for those who drink their metal black and without sugar. It is another great album in Sweden’s proud tradition of black metal mastery.

Former Iron Maiden vocalist Paul Di’Anno is back with a new album featuring Mercyful Fate’s Becky Baldwin and a Depeche Mode cover!