Entrails — Raging Death
★★☆☆ This sounds like a cross between vintage albums from Entombed and Carcass. That’s a blessing and a curse, as the album has a tendency to feel dated or underevolved. See the rest here
First Listens With Two-Star Ratings
Pestilence — Obsideo
★★☆☆ This is a brutal slab of death metal, not unlike the latest Gorguts… but there’s an inherent goofiness that brings it down a peg. Too bad, as its loudness and brutality are quite pleasing. See the rest here
Meek Is Murder — Everything Is Awesome Nothing Matters
★★☆☆ There’s actually plenty to like about this release (clocking in at 17 minutes, I can’t bring myself to think of it as anything other than an EP, even though it has 13 tracks). It reminds me of the best parts of anything that Kurt Ballou has touched (which, by the way, includes this recording too). See the rest here
Russian Circles — Memorial
★★☆☆ It’s good, it’s dynamic, but it’s frankly a little difficult to get excited about or pumped by. You know how you’ll say, “Oh yeah, I fucking LOVE baklava!” but never actually think about it unless you see it in front of you? This album is like that. See the rest here
Living Sacrifice — Ghost Thief
★★☆☆ It’s good, it rocks, but it doesn’t really stick with you after the first listen. Definitely recommended as a once-through, though. Hopefully more good things will come from this band in the future. See the rest here
Motörhead — Aftershock
★★☆☆ This is a thoroughly decent continuation of what Motörhead has been consistently doing for years: churning out well-produced high-octane hard rock. That said, only the briefest of moments on this album will get you anywhere near the memorability or caliber of… well, anything you’d hear on a “Best Of” album (and, let’s face it, that’s pretty much as much Motörhead as I’ll ever need anyway). See the rest here
Ihsahn — Das Seelenbrechen
★★☆☆ The entire album features Ihsahn at his most cinematic. This is both a testament to one of the most inventive and prolific musicians in metal today… and a big problem for the listener. Every track sounds like it’s excerpted from somewhere in the middle of a soundtrack. There are no real starts or finishes here, so the whole thing is more comparable to Fantomas than any concept album, or anything else that Ihsahn has done post-Emperor. See the rest here
Pelican — Forever Becoming
★★☆☆ An entertaining journey without much of a destination or impetus to get moving in the first place. It’s enjoyable, mind you, but it lacks the gravitas that can’t be explained away simply by a lack of vocals. See the rest here
Skeletonwitch — Serpents Unleashed
★★☆☆ Of the many bands to be produced by Kurt Ballou this year, Skeletonwitch may have benefited the most from his touch. Their latest album is as short and unsubtle as ever, but it’s definitely punchy, accessible, and fun. See the rest here
Death Angel — The Dream Calls For Blood
★★☆☆ This album has a damn fine sound, clearly written by a band who never gave up the dream of thrash. All the same, it does take some time to warm up, and the high points are eclipsed by tedious tropes that we’ve heard before (not that that’s a bad thing, but their staleness is made all the more obvious by the surprising freshness found in other places). See the rest here
