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This month we talk UK to punk-turned-thrash metal band Onslaught, to learn more about the band's illustrious past from the eyes of bassist Jeff, and to know what it is like to work with one of the pioneering UK thrash bands. We also talk to Ragnarok, to find out more about the constantly rotating members in the band and how it has affected the writing of their newest masterpiece, Malediction. India's heavy metal band Albatross is our Asian Spotlight pick for the month, as bassist Dr. Hex and vocalist Biprorshee gives us a background of the band, and of their collaboration with Vestal Claret on the latest split. Finally, we have Khonsu on our Sounds of the Underground section, the new black/industrial/progressive band featuring members of Keep of Kalessin. To end the year, we have 8 contenders for album of the year, in addition to our usual 6 Editor's Picks.
This month we talk UK to punk-turned-thrash metal band Onslaught, to learn more about the band's illustrious past from the eyes of bassist Jeff, and to know what it is like to work with one of the pioneering UK thrash bands. We also talk to Ragnarok, to find out more about the constantly rotating members in the band and how it has affected the writing of their newest masterpiece, Malediction. India's heavy metal band Albatross is our Asian Spotlight pick for the month, as bassist Dr. Hex and vocalist Biprorshee gives us a background of the band, and of their collaboration with Vestal Claret on the latest split. Finally, we have Khonsu on our Sounds of the Underground section, the new black/industrial/progressive band featuring members of Keep of Kalessin. To end the year, we have 8 contenders for album of the year, in addition to our usual 6 Editor's Picks.
This month we talk UK to punk-turned-thrash metal band Onslaught, to learn more about the band's illustrious past from the eyes of bassist Jeff, and to know what it is like to work with one of the pioneering UK thrash bands. We also talk to Ragnarok, to find out more about the constantly rotating members in the band and how it has affected the writing of their newest masterpiece, Malediction. India's heavy metal band Albatross is our Asian Spotlight pick for the month, as bassist Dr. Hex and vocalist Biprorshee gives us a background of the band, and of their collaboration with Vestal Claret on the latest split. Finally, we have Khonsu on our Sounds of the Underground section, the new black/industrial/progressive band featuring members of Keep of Kalessin. To end the year, we have 8 contenders for album of the year, in addition to our usual 6 Editor's Picks.
Issue 5 lieceiJlber 2012 Strictly not for sale T!}tabp jr-Neta[ mnhunt Onslaught off as a hardcore punk band in 1 changed their style to a punk-influenced thrash metal. The reformation in 2004 saw the inclusion of new members, with Sounds of Violence being their latest offering to longtime fans of the band. Bassist Jeff tells us more. Onslaught was formed all the way back in 1982 as a hardcore punk band before shifting to a thrash metal sound with the debut, Power from Hell in 1985. What was the reason behind the shift in the musical direction for the band? I guess they started listening to Motorhead! Haha! To be honest the link between punk and thrash has always been there, you know? The same kind of aggression and attitude so for some bands it was just a logical progression. The band went on hiatus in 1991, but reformed again in 2004k, with yourself joining the band in 2006 and playing in the band ever since. How did the current lineup of the band come about? because he was the last bassist in the band before the 'hiatus' and Alan because he had played with some of the Onslaught guys in other projects they had going during the break. When it became clear quite quickly after the guys got back together and after a few shows that Jim couldn't commit to the band due to work issues I was asked to come along to a few rehearsals and get to know the set. I'd played with both Nige (Rockett) and Alan in the Power Junkies, which was one of the bands formed be- tween Onslaught stints, so that's why I got the call. Alan, again due to work reasons, decided to leave the band and I was recommended to get in Well originally the guys got back together with touch with a guy called Andy (Rosser-Davies) by Jim Hinder on Bass and Alan Jordan on guitar, Jim some friends in Swansea we got him down to the A t practice room and he nailed it, had about a week to learn the set before a German tour as far as I remember? Same sort of thing with Steve, he decided to leave just before a lengthy European tour and I got in touch with an old friend of mine Mic (Hourahan) who was playing drums for ENT and Desecration at the time and in about ten days or so he' d got the whole thing down. The band has never sounded better! There's a real energy about everything now. Having already played on 2 full length releases for the band, Killing Peace and Sounds of Vio- lence, how was it like working with Nige and Sy, especially considering Onslaught's status as one of the pioneering bands of thrash metal as we know it today? Well even though I was rehearsing with the band at the time I didn' t actually play on Killing Peace, that was Jim. But I did get involved with the art- work! Haha .... about 95% of the cover and book- let artwork on that album is mine. My first offi- cial Onslaught appearance was on the Live Polish Assault DVD by the way. Working with Nige and Sy is always a pleasure, like I said, I'd known Nige from a previous band and Sy is a total Gentleman so no problems at all . The band's last release was last year's Sounds of Violence. The album boasts a rather modern approach to old school thrash metal, sounding like a melting pot of classic thrash bands such as Exodus and Slayer. What are some of the other bands that have had a large impact on the writing of Sounds of Violence? The guys went back and listened to a lot of old classic thrash and metal albums as well as new and contemporary metal, not just thrash, just to hear how bands were getting that massive, crush your face production! Haha! But it was always going to have an old school thrash vi be to it, that was the intention any way. What was the recording experience like for you, especially with Nige, Sy and Steve, who are all part of Onslaught's early history? It was great, most of the bass parts were put down in a little studio in South Wales but I did go to Jacob' s (Hansen) studio in Denmark for a couple of weeks putting down some backing vocals and the bass for ' Bomber' as well as fin- ishing off a few other parts. To be honest the guys never play up to their 'early history' so I've never really thought about it. We' re all about looking forward. Also, would it be possible to tell us more about the compositional and conceptualization pro- cess for Sounds of Violence? Who is the main songwriter, and how are the songs written in the band? Nige and Andy wrote the music for the album, I got a few lyrics in there and again did the art work but musically it came down to Nige and Andy so its best to ask them, when you come to the show maybe? The lyrics on Sounds of Violence as usual re- volve around the themes of war, destruction and anti-religion. Where was inspiration drawn from for the lyrical contents this time round, and with today's world being in constant ten- sion, were there any particular events that were significant in the writing of the band's lyrics? 'Constant tension'? Haha, yea that sounds about right! The worlds not always, in fact not often, a great place to be. Other people can sing about the nice side of life be we're representatives of the other side and it gets pretty dark. So many events you could pick on as inspiration, every other day there' s a report on some atrocity somewhere so I doubt we' ll ever be short of sub- ject matter! At the same time though we never take ourselves too seriously you'd fuck yourself up if that' s the way you thought all the time! The album also includes a cover of Motorhead's Bomber. What was the reason behind the in- clusion of this cover, and why pick this song in particular? Why Bomber? It's a classic track from a classic British metal band so I couldn' t think of a better & 2 song to do! I knew Phil (Campbell) and asked if he would play on it for us, and being such a cool motherfucker, he said yes and that was that! I think having Phil playing on it adds a lot of weight to the track and to be honest it makes me smile every time I listen to it, very cool! Would it also be possible to tell us more about the insignia that is on the album artwork of Sounds of Violence? I wanted a simple but powerful image that got people thinking and summed up the title of the album too 'Sounds of Violence', a strong album title needs a strong image to back it up. Through history the meaning of the symbols on the cover have been completely corrupted because of their later negative association, what were once positive images of strength and protection are now what they're perceived to be which is pretty much the exact opposite and that is what I think has caused some controversy which is good if, like I said earlier, it gets people to think The band has recently stated on its Facebook page that studio time has been booked. How is the writing and recording process for the new album progressing so far? When can fans of On- slaught hear new material from the band? New album is pretty much written and yes the studio time is booked and we start recording really soon. We're hoping to get it out there sometime in the Spring next year. The band will be performing at the end of No- vember in Singapore along Inquisition, Desecra- tion and Deathhammer. What can fans expect at the show? Our first show in Singapore! We are looking to completely destroy everything! Hahaha! We' ve got a great set ready, everything that you would expect, a good mixture of old and new classics, a fuck ton of energy and we really can't wait. it's going to be a full on 666% thrash metal extrava- ganza! We want everyone there involved! Get in the pit! Looking forward to hanging out and get- ting to meet as many folks as possible after the show too, hell yea can't fucking wait! a Onslaught Essentials Power from Hell [1985) The debut release of Onslaught, thrash metal with their punk- fuelled, d-beat rage, presenting what would be one of the definitive templates for future thrash metal. Includes the classic tracks Onslaught (Power from Hell) and Death Metal. Sounds like a fusion of Venom, with that same evil feel, only sped up infinitely with the speed of old schol teutonic thrash like De- struction. l l i : ~ ~ m ! l m l l The Force [1986) Riding on the momen- tum that they have gained with Power from Hell, Onslaught returns one short year later with their sopho- more album, The Force, further polishing the sound that they have crafted, with the heavy Venom influences still present in the music. The songs here are longer and more well-crafted, and is certainly a mark of the growth of the band as musicians. Sounds of Violence [2011) Latest release from the band, featuring the up- dated lineup. On- slaught here presents an extremly modern sound, as do many clas- sic, old school bands have and has successfully proven their versatility, and that they still have what it takes to thrash the fuck out after more than 20 years of existence. The band has even in- cluded a cover of Motorhead's Bomber. Onslaught plays at True Meta/Invasion on 29th November at the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, alongside Deathham- mer, Desecration and more! Congratulations on the release of the new album, Malediction. How has response been for the album? The response has been great. We' ve had lots of great reviews and a lot of interest from the media. All the fans have really taken to "Blood of Saints" that has been streaming for awhile now, and we are very happy about the attention around " Malediction" . Hopefully this album wil l be the breakthrough that we deserve. There was a rather significant gap of 6 years be- tween the release of Blackdoor Miracle and Collectors of the King. Were there any particu- lar reasons behind that 6 year gap? The reason was simply that I had enough of the lineup change and I needed time off from the band to focus on other projects. But after a while when I played with Endezzma I felt that it wasn't right to put the band asleep. I felt I had to get in on its feet's again since I didn't feel that I have reached my goals yet, and I got the spirit back to continue. I don't regret this at all. Over the years of Ragnarok's career, the band has seen numerous shifts in its members, in particular in the vocals and guitars section. Malediction sees HansFyrste handling vocals once more after his stellar work on Collectors of the King. How did this collaboration come about back in 2008? It started up through guitarist Brigge cause they studied at the same school at the time. Brigge told me that HansFyrste was a big fan and a cool guy who really was into the black metal ideol- ogy. I got interested and let him t ry this. He re- hearsed well and did two festivals that con- vinced me that he was the right guy for the band. The music on Malediction, while retaining the aggressive and intense edge that Collectors of the King has brought in, also sees the band in- cluding a slightly more melodic. yet markedly technical edge at the same time especially in the guitars department. How did the current sound of the band come about? This evolution is probably a natural evolution as guitarist Bolverk has a wide range of inspirations and also a broad musical experience. He's a big fan of the albums " In Nomine Satanas" and " Biackdoor Miracle" and was trying to put " Malediction" somewhere in between those two albums. As well as being inspired these he obviously also brought a fair share of himself to the music. "Malediction" sounds 100% Ragn- arok, and the music is still varied as well as un- compromising while there are melodies as well as total mayhem How did Bolverk's inclusion in the band come about, and how has the inclusion of Bolverk af- fected the dynamics of the band in terms of songwriting? Brigge simply didn' t take the pressure in playing in a band like Ragnarok and therefore he chose to come up with a pretty lame excuse and quit the band after a hard Russian tour. On this tour Bolverk was the second guitar player and I chose to hire him as a full member after his excellent work on the tour. Bolverk gave the band new spirit and he is a very dedicated guy who doesn't give up and really has the spirit in him. His music writing have given the band a lot and you can hear that on Malediction. What was the recording process like? Once again we recorded with Devo of Marduk in his Endarker studio, but this time around we had all the material thoroughly rehearsed before we entered the studio. We even had some songs left over. The recording process was very efficient and took us about two weeks. This left Devo with two weeks to mix the album, and it really shows in the sound that it's a recording that has been given a lot of attention. We are very happy with the sound of Maledicton. As mentioned, the inclusion of a new guitarist brings about a different sound each time in the band's release. Would it be possible to tell us more about the conceptualization process for Malediction? Lyrically Malediction evolves around blasphe- mous, satanic and ritualistic subjects. One of the founding ideas is that people should stop being followers and become leaders instead. Take con- trol of your own life and your own destiny. Trust in yourself and think for yourself instead of adopting the ideas of others as your own. Musically the songs are inspired from the earlier work of Ragnarok as well as a million other sources ranging from traditional metal to ex- treme and black metal, but also classical music and film music. What are some of the largest challenges that are faced in the writing of Malediction? As I am the driving force of Ragnarok not much have changed and on the Malediction album the lineup was stable. It is me and the guitar player that always put the songs together and I have the final word of what is used or not. On this album we did the same but I gave Bolverk a lot of free- dom and it turned out really great. I have to say that the cooperation between me a Bolverk is the real thing. I also had this with Rym from the early days and the best and most complete band now if we choose two guitar players would be RYM and BOLVERK in this band. How did the decision to work with Devo on Col- lectors of the King come about initially, and what was it like working with him? Devo knows black metal and he understands what Ragnarok is all about. He's a great guy as well as being a wiz in the studio. Devo is a very dedicated musician and does know what black metal is about so it was easy to choose him again. We have also become close friends and work great together. It was even better to work with him on this album cause he knows us even better. Malediction is also the band's first release under Agonia Records. How did this come about? Agonia Records were interested in signing Ragn- arok for some time and the showed a huge inter- est in the band. After a good while we came to an agreement that both parts could accept and we are very satisfied with being on Agonia. So far they have worked hard for the band and we see this relationship as a great platform for both Agonia and Ragnarok to grow bigger. Agonia has done great promotion for "Malediction" and we are going to honour their investment by touring the world to shreds. a A s Asian Spotlight: Albatross Dubbed "horror metal", India's Albatross has solidified their reputation as a heavy metal powerhouse. The recent split with American doom band Vestal Claret displayed a further growth in the band's sound. Mastermind Dr. Hex gives us an insight to the band. Albatross was formed back in 2008, playing a form of heavy metal that has often been dubbed "horror metal", with the lyrical themes and musical style of the band. Why the usage of metal to spread your love of literature? What first drew me to metal were titles such as ' For whom the bell tolls' and 'Rime of the An- cient Mariner', and their translation from Uust) stories into metal classics. With metal, there was suddenly a soundtrack to a lot of my favou- rite stories; and I could now envision horses gal- loping down desolate plains or witches dancing by a fire with the added assistance of music. It is unfortunate that the word literature is seen as a stigma, or a burden, because books have given me as many hours of entertainment over the years as music. I chanced upon Abigail by King Diamond, and realized that music could also be used as a medium to effectively tell original sto- ries. And from there (in addition to my love for everything from Poe to Stephen King), Albatross unfurled its wings. The band was eventually completed with the stabilisation of the band's lineup before the re- stabilisation of the band's lineup before the re- cording of the debut EP, Dinner is You. How did the decision to have a complete band lineup come about? It's funny, because back when I' d formed the band it was always meant to be a fun, on-the- side kind of project. I' d actually contemplated doing a one off gig with some friends and Bi- prorshee back in 2009, as Albatross and ending it right there. I'd also once considered doing gigs with a revolving lineup, ie. a different band every time. Little did I know that one day I'd get to play on the same stage as Kreator and Wolf someday! Anyway, halfway through recording Dinner is You, myself and Raj arshi, our founder guitarist decided that this was too good a lineup to let go to waste and decided to take the act live. We chose a full time lineup, as it was just easier to manage, and execute better gigs with. Albatross' first EP, Dinner is You was finally re- leased in 2010, with Andy LaRocque handling the mastering process. What was the reason behind choosing him to master the EP, and what was it like working with him? Yet again, I wasn't as ambitious with Albatross back in 2010, as I am right now. I didn' t know we'd ever release a second EP, and I used Dinner is You as an excuse to speak to my ultimate metal God, Andy LaRocque. I think I'd have been happy even with a very lacklustre sounding EP back then; but thankfully he did a fantastic job. King Diamond has been one of my biggest influences, and it was only fitting that Andy does the master- ing on my dream project. There's a line in Among the Cannibals saying 'Among the Cannibals I am King', which is in a way, a tribute to King Dia- mond as well. Dinner is You is a nice mixture of various metal styles, from the speed/power metal of In the Court of Kuru to the almost doom ish Among the Cannibals. That being the first studio release of the band, what was the songwriting process like? Rajarshi and me pretty much wrote the whole album beforehand and got Biprorshee, Jimmy and Jay to play their parts. It was definitely not as involved as our second EP, The Kissing Flies. We had no idea of what our sound was at that point, all we knew is what we didn't want the EP to sound like back then. Which is we didn't want any metalcore, djent or modern music elements creeping in. I had the basic outline for a story during 'The Dining Table', and developed on it as more and more riffs started coming in from Ra- jarshi. The songwriting wasn't very cohesive as such, but we're all pretty happy with the out- come I think. Even the current lineup is, hahaha! There was also a rather heavy focus on the themes of cannibalism on Dinner is You, from the album artwork to the lyrics of Among the Cannibals. What's with the obsession with can- nibalism, and how did this interest come about? To me, lyrics have always been more important than the music, and music has always been a medium to express the lyrics in an interesting manner. I came upon the idea of the Kuru dis- ease back in 2008 or so, when I read a book called Cut Throat by Michael Slade. The idea of a laughing disease which affects cannibals with equally hilarious and terrifying, and I thought it was a great pivot for the story to spin upon. There's a lot of all my favourite classic horror mo- ments in the EP in addition to this, from Dracula to Silence of the Lambs. This year the band released its split with Vestal Claret, entitled The Kissing Flies. The recording of The Kissing Flies saw the entrance of new gui- tarists Vignesh and Hegde, with a different sound compared to Dinner is You. How was the songwriting and recording process different this time compared to that of Dinner is You? Biprorshee: More than anything else, we are glad we were able to finally put together a stable line- up with Vignesh and Nishith (Hedge). Before this, we had some brief issues with getting two guitar- ists, who would be able to do justice to our style of music and also be completely committed after the departure of our first guitarist, Rajarshi and then Shrikant. Our former guitarists had left their respective impressions on the band and we faced the task of finding appropriate musicians to fill in the gap. Vignesh and Nishith came in heavily rec- ommended and with their own set of incredible talent. To cut a long story short, we were very ex- cited from the first time we jammed with them and it has been over a year since they have helped Albatross head in the very direction, we had first planned. The Kissing Flies, of course had to sound a lot dif- ferent from our previous release because each of us has moved on and maybe even improved with our respective styles. We paid attention to every aspect that goes into new Albatross material and have tried to be more mature -- from the concept we put down, a sound that is heavier, polished yet maintains that old school rawness to better production and distribution. When we released Dinner Is You, we were just getting started, there weren't many people who knew us. This time around, we knew the audience would be slightly wider than before and hence that much extra effort needed to be put in to make the record sound very Albat ross for the ones who know us already yet good enough and different for newer listeners to welcome the band. 11. 7 When it came to recording, we moved to a more professional studio with Sahil 'The Demon- stealer' Makhija producing the record at De- monic Studios, being mixed in Sweden by Wolf's Niklas Stalvind and eventually mastered by Vestal Claret's Simon Tuozzoli. Overall, it was a much more thorough and professional effort. And we hope to go another step ahead when we are ready with our next release. As mentioned, the songs on The Kissing Flies are different, with songs like the title track and From Ashes Comes Life even including a some- what progressive feel on top of the old school heavy metal that is on the split, at the same time being somewhat sounding more techni- cally challenging. Was this an intentional move by the band, and if so, why? Nah, it was more organic than that. The riffs and music were composed in accordance with a short story I' d written, and we rejected so many ideas that it's not funny. The progressive aspect came naturally, because the sudden changes co- incide with weird going-ons in the story itself. Bi- prorshee was more emotive, and pushed him- self to the limit on this album though. I guess the technicality came from a younger set of guitar players, who taught the 3 old timers in the band a lesson or two on how to write new music. Unlike Dinner is You where the focus was on cannibalism, the band presents a different theme this time, though the stench of putrefac- tion remains strong. Where did you draw inspi- ration from this time when writing the lyrics for songs like Uncle Sunny at the Tavern and Kiss- ing Flies? Haha, well the inspiration from the story came from many hours of research on flies on the in- ternet, as well as a revisit of my classic Lovecraft and Poe stories. The first line of Kissing Flies is a direct tribute to Poe's 'The Raven' , and the over- all vibe of Uncle Sunny At the Tavern has many parallels with Lovecraft's lnnsmouth. The whole idea of a town which centres around a man comes more from weird fiction/fantasy that I' m into currently like Mieville, M. John Harrison, Vandermeer and Kelly Link. Furthermore, there are numerous guest musi- cians on the split, including Wolf vocalist Niklas Stalvind. How did his involvement in the split come about, and why him in particular? Biprorshee: Riju introduced me to Wolf and I have been hooked on to their music ever since. Unabashed pure heavy metal the way we love it. No trying to get all fancy, progressive and the works. I, personally am a big fan of clean vocals and Niklas' work is just how I've grown up listen- ing to. You sing metal, you don't scream it out. We had even picked up a song of Wolf's (Voodoo) and for sometime, it was a regular fea- ture in our set. Meanwhile, Riju got in touch with Niklas on Facebook. Niklas had appreciated our first effort and when both Riju and I were looking for some- one to do a guest spot on the split, we unani- mously agreed to approach our friend in Sweden. Thankfully, he agreed. I remember the day when Niklas sent us the first mix of Uncle Sunny with his parts. Riju was absolutely thrilled and when I heard, for the first time, Niklas sing- ing, 'Where there's death, there are flies', I was blown away and was left wondering, ' I can't fuck- ing reproduce this live'. Also, how did this collaboration with Vestal Claret come about? Does the band that Alba- tross does splits with affect the songs that are written for the split? I'd passed a link to Philip Swanson from Vestal Claret (and many other bands I love like Briton Rites, Hour of 13, Seamount) and he was so im- pressed that he asked us to collaborate with him on a split EP. And yes, it does. We went for a more doomy and dark atmosphere for our split with Vestal Claret; and for our upcoming split with US based metal band Sinister Realm we' re going to create a more straightforward heavy metal record. While still retaining the essential Albatross elements, it'll be far less progressive than before. Just loud, brash and headbang-y like never before. The band recently released a cover of Judas Priest's Night Crawler as a tribute to the gods of heavy metal. What is the reason behind the re- cording of this cover track? Biprorshee: We often randomly start jamming on some old metal classics when we are rehears- ing. Out of the blue, Vignesh might start playing the Master of Puppets riff, Jay would follow on the drums and then the rest of us. So, we have fun doing this off and on. Sometimes, even in- clude some classics in our set; just to have fun, pay a tribute, get the audience more involved. We were already covering Wolf's Voodoo. Then we did an Ozzy/Sabbath tribute in Bangalore last December. And later covered, what is my per- sonal favourite, Dio's Holy Diver. Each time, we got some pretty favourable feedback for our covers and hence, when we decided to fill in the lull period when there were no gigs or any new material the band was recording, we thought of putting out a cover, and why not Priest? They are what they are. They have and continued to in- spire millions like us. And from the very begin- ning, Priest and Maiden have been the two bands that have inspired Albatross the most. We randomly jammed on a few Priest songs like Touch of Evil, Electric Eye, Freewheel Burning, Night Crawler and some more. Night Crawler seemed the perfect choice among the rest when we decided to head to the studio to record that one Judas Priest song we all loved. Can fans of Albatross expect to hear more new material from the band soon? Biprorshee: Absolutely! Riju and the two guitar- ists always keep the band on its toes. Riju writing more stories and the boys going nuts writing new riffs. We are ready with a new concept and new songs. And we are looking to begin record- ing sometime early next year. The new songs, personally to me as a vocalist seem a lot more challenging but that is what has been the entire experience of being the Alba- tross front man. We are still staying true to our in- fluences, we have put in elements of raw thrash and power metal. We keep our fingers crossed. The metal shall be bloody heavy! A, Albatros/Vestal Claret The Kissing Flies/Black Priest [2012] Albatross displays a more polished sound, build- ing on the foundations that they had on their EP Diner is You. New guitarists Hegde and Vignesh display their prowess, with powerful riffs and leads. Wolf frontman Niklas makes a guest ap- pearance on the excellent Uncle Sunny at the Tavern, and Demonic Resurrection' s Sahil pro- vides the growls, giving the songs a sinister vi be. Vestal Claret's side is equally remarkable, with a single, 17 minute track of clasic doom metal. Black Priest reeks of blasphemy, and brings out the antichrist in the listener. The constant shift of pace in the music also brings about a similar shift in mood, ranging from haunting and somewhat depressive to just straight on aggression. News in 5 minutes ... Norwegian black metal band Svarttjern has signed to Noiseart Records, and is recroding an album for an early 2013 release. Belphegor is currently working on their currently untitled new album, to be released in March 2013 under Nuclear Blast Records. The album is being recorded at Mana Recording Studios under Erik Rutan (Hate Eternal, Morbid Angel). Polish death metal band Hate to release its new album So/arjlesh under Napalm Records in Feb- ruary 2013. Impiety has signed to Hellsheadbangers Re- cords, and will be releasing a new single and full length album in 2013. A new MCD, entitled The Impious Crusade is currently in the works, to be released in early 2013 under HHR. Black Sabbath will release The Vinyl Collection: 1970-1978 box set on December 12, featuring 9 releases on 12" LP, a 7" single and a 12" x 12" hard-backed book. Stratovarius has completed the recording of their new album, to be released in spring 2013. Roadrunner Records has announced Mike East- erlin, previously the head of promotion of the label as the new general manager, after the de- parture of president Jonas Nachsin. Watain has signed to Century Media Records, and their upcoming album will be released next year via His Master' Noise in collaboration with Century Media Records. Spiritual Beggars have started recording the follow up to Return to Zero, and is to be released in spring 2013 via lnsideOut Music. UK progressive black metallers Fen has set Dust- walker to be the title of their third full-length album, set to be released on January 21, 2013 via Code666 Records. The album will be released in a CD format and a clam box, which will contain a bonus track and a pendant of the band's logo. 2012 Roundup Horrendous The Chills (2012) [Dark Descent Records] The Chills was one of the early contenders of the year, leaving a rather deep impact as one of the first few releases that I encountered in 2012. The nice mixture of influences that are present in Horrendous' debut fullength album from all over the place, ranging from Swedish death metal to classic death metal such as Death to even some slight stoner/doom metal makes this a nice, balanced record, along with a nice, fresh sound that many bands have struggled to achieve. The old school touch also ensures that those addicted to the roots of metal would be pleased with this record as well. Binah Hallucinating in Resur- recture (2012) [Dark Descent Records] Dark Descent Records proves their ability in pick- ing out the very best bands in the death metal underground, and Binah's debut Hallucinating in Resurrecture certainly proves this easily. A nice mixture of high octane, death metal on- slaught and slowr, doom-paced funeral march- es, Binah's debut presents a wide range of old schol influences, from Dutch death metal leg- ends Asphyx to Incantation with that heavy, suf- focating atmosphere that the band has created on the album. Little technical flamboyance here, as the band completely focuses on the atmo- sphere and the mood that is conjured with the ambience in the music. For more top-of lists, head down to http://heavymetaltribune.c.om/ Sigh In Somniphobia (2012) [Candlelight Records] Known best for their weird-fuckery, In Somnip- hobia is Sigh's ninth full length offering, and marks the second full length appearance of saxo- phonist and vocalist Dr. Mikkanibal. The saxo- phones' presence are markedly increased, and the black metal side of Sigh' s music are now almost non-existent. The mixture of the high pitched vocals of band mastermind Mirai and the gruff growls of Mikanibal make the listen all the more interesting, complete with influences from all over the place, from jazz to neoclassical heavy metal, making In Somniphobia one of the most ambitious extreme metal releases in recent years (apart from their own releases of course). Galneryus Angel of Salvation (2012) [VAP] Angel of Salvation is the third full length release of Japanese neoclassical power metal outfit Gal- nervus that features new vocalist Masatoshi, and this is probably the first release under Masa- toshi that I truly enjoy. The soaring melodies of guitarist Syu are still present, and his neoclassical style of shredding are aplenty throughout the album, with the ones on title track Angel of Sal- vation being some of the most memorable. The high energy performance of the band also makes this album an extremely infectious one. Masa- toshi proves himself as an extremely capable vo- calist, not only in terms of his vocal range, but also in the ability to capture and stir the emo- tions in the listener at the same time. Definitely puts Galneryus as one of the best neoclassical acts out of Japan so far. Deiphago Satan Alpha Omega (2012) [Hells Headbangers] Filipino antichrist outfit Deiphago returns this year with Satan Alpha Omega, the follow up to their 2009 release. This time boasting new drum- mer Savnok, the band presents a sound that leans towards bands like Conqueror and Black Witchery, and is an aural treat to fans of bestial war metal. Songs on the album now take a more proper form, in an organised chaos compared to the completely chaotic release that was Filipino Antichrist (which I honestly, didn't really fancy) . The outro that lasts in excess of 7 minutes is also one of the highlights of the album, with the noise leaving a disturbing final mark on the listener before the album ends. Kreator Phanton (2012) Antichrist [Nuclear Blast Records] With Phantom Antichrist, Teutonic thrash leg- ends Kreator take a slightly different and more melodic approach this time, and the introductory Mars Mantra and From Flood into Fire proves this. However, the aggressive edge is still re- tained, with songs like the title track and The Few, The Proud, The Broken easily resulting in sore necks. Civilization Collapse stands out as a rather unique track, what with the tribal percus- sions that are present. Drummer Ventor is also one of the main attractions on the album, help- ing to bring out all the pent up energy that is kept in the band to the fore. . 11 Pseudogod Deathwomb Catechesis(2012) [Kvlt] Crushing, oppressive death metal on Russian black/death metal band Pseudogod's debut full length release, Deathwomb Catechesis. Over the years the band has released numerous splits, EPs and demos, so here is the first full length reissue, more than 40 minutes of death metal to ensure that no one gets out al ive. The vast influences in the band's writing is evident, ranging from the old schol death metal of Incantation to the bes- tial style that Canadian warmongers like Blas- phemy have created. Apart from the energy of the riffs and the drumming on the album, the spacey atmosphere adds to the overall experi- encce of the album. Cardiac Necropsy Shayateen (2012) [Independent] Cardiac Necropsy's reputation in the local metal circle prior to Shayateen has been one of fun and reckless abandon, but one short year after the release of their debut full length album, the band returns with Shayateen, their first studio foray into technical death metal waters, almost completely abandoning their previous goregrind style of playing. Unlike the previous style, the music on Shayateen is infinitely more serious, and the band proves that they are not just all fun and games as the technicality and complexity in the music proves. The traditional musical ele- ments that are included on the album with songs like The Reign of Ad-Dajja/ makes their music stand out even more, like an Oriental version of bands like Cryptopsy. Definitely one of the best local releases of the year. Edito(s Picks Paroxsihzem Paroxsihzem (2012) [Dark Descent Records] Canadian black/death metal is more alive than ever, with Paroxsihzem joining the ranks of bands like Andtediluvian and Adversarial in pro- ducing some of the filthiest death metal ever heard. Despite the self-titled being the band's debut full length release, it contains re-recorded versions of the songs that were previously al- ready available on the band's previous self-titled demo, breathing in new life to old material. Spoken samples and the dark, ominous atmo- sphere that constantly lingers makes things all the more oppressing and suffocating as well. If you like bands like Bestial Raids and Antedilu- vian, this one should not be missed. Rage Nucleaire Unrelenting Fucking Hatred (2012) [Season of Mist] Featuring most prominently ex-Cryptopsy vocal- ist Lord Worm, Rage Nucleaire presents a vastly different style of music compared to his previ- ous, classic words with those technical death metal legends. Rage Nucleaire is essentially a black metal band, and for the most part of the album, goes at a breakneck sped as though speed were of the essence. The urgency that is created causes a sense of panic in the listener as well, with especially in the drumming sections. There are however some melodic and darker, melancholic moments that bring in a scene of the destruction caused by war and violence, dis- playing the band' s flair in songwriting. Lord Worm also proves his abilities as a vocalist, easily fitting into the style of the band. A tz Maveth Coils of the Black Earth (2012) [Dark Descent Records] Apart from the Swedish and American death metal scene, Finnish death metal is also seeing a strong revival. Featuring 3 members of Crypt- born, Maveth presents their debut full length re- lease in the form of Coils of the Black Earth. The material here sounds like a slightly blackened version of Cryptborn, and brings in infleunces from old school Finnish death metal bands like Abhorrence into the picture. The abrasive guit ar riffs may remind most of the tonality that Swed- ish death metal has created, but the songwriting here is different, and conjures comparisons to bands like lncantaion, to blackened death metal bands like Antediluvian. Manticore Behold the Ascension ofthe Execrated (2012) [Deathgasm Records] When I was first big into the style of death metal bands like Archgoat, Manticore was another of those bands that I thoroughly enjoyed, espe- cially their 2006 release For Rats and Plague. 6 years on, the band releases the follow up Behold the Ascension of the Execrated. The production quality here is much rawer than before, beating even the band' s debut Bowels of the Holy Anoint Us in Evil. But the musical style and songwriting is still evidently Manticore, with rather heavy in- fluences from Archgoat, though this time the band has included some slight Swedish-sound- ing influences as well, expanding the sound that they have created thus far. The included cover of Venom's In Nomine Satanas also makes things interesting, to say the least. Arbogast I (2012) [Nefarious Industries) Stoner/doom metal is a genre that I just recently got into, and Arbogast's debut full length I is defi- nitely a good addition to one' s collection of stoner metal. Fusing elements of thrash metal into their rather unique brand of stoner metal, Arbogast presents a wide variety of sound on a record that lasts just below SO minutes. Imagine a band like Church of Misery, fused with the thrash metal of Bay Area li ke Metallica, with a tinge of punk attitude and energy. While that isn' t the best description of the band, one should roughly get an image of the band's sound. Difficulty to classify Arbogast is certainly not an isue here as the music speaks for itself, being one of the most enjoyable records so far. Binaash Binaashkhari (2012) [Independent) The appearance of extreme metal in such lands as Nepal is a mark of the global nature of metal music in recent times. Apart from Kalodin, Bina- ash is the second band out of the country that I encounter, who dub their musical style as "fun metal" . But beneath that name lies a more seri- ous, brutal style of death metal, and often the band sounds like a more grinding version of bands like Devourment. Of course, calling them- selves fun metal would not make sense if there is no element of "fun" in the music, as shown through the large number of interludes and at times ridiculous sound samples and transitions that are on the album, though they could end up being somewhat irritating sometimes. . 13 Sounds of the Underground Featuring members from bands like Keep of Kalessin, Khonsu is the result of the collaboration between the Grnbech brothers. The band's debut Anomalia features in addition Thebon on vocals, and is a dark, yet haunt- ingly futuristic journey. Obsidian C. tells us more. Khonsu was formed initially as Merah, but soon mation of the band? changed its name. What is the meaning behind the band's name? Greetings! This is Obsidian C. from Keep of Kales- sin. Apart from being brothers with Steffan, I'm also the manager and live guitarist of Khonsu. It's true that Steffen had to change the name be- cause there was a terrorist attack in France by a man called Merah. After doing some searching around and thinking, he chose Khonsu which is an ancient god of the moon in Egyptology. The name means "traveler" or "he who travels across the night sky". I think he chose it because of the associations with the night, cosmos and outer space, deadness and desolation, darkness, and also because of the image of being outside of and excluded from life (represented by the earth). The moon has always been associated with something strange, eerie, and almost haunting. What was the original intention behind the for- Back in 2003, me and Steffen was working on some songs that were intended for a new proj- ect, but it wasn't realized. Instead, Steffen went on to focus on his psychology studies, while i fo- cused on Keep of Kalessin. We released the Re- claim EP, and used some of the songs and riffs which me and Steffen made together. Well, even though my brother had a lot of work with his studies, he kept on recording musical ideas in all kinds of genres on his computer. Over the years the ideas accumulated, and he finally sat down to put ideas together into coherent wholes (songs) a few years back. I guess that is when Khonsu was born. My brother has always had an interest in extreme metal, especially the more atmospheric kind, and the talent for making atmospheric music. So in my opinion it was about time he released something. The band also features Thebon on vocals, com- pleting the lineup of Khonsu for the recording A, t4 of Anomalia. How did the inclusion of Thebon on the album come about? Thebon was a very natural choice actually. Stef- fen knew him trough me, and he is a very good vocalist. Steffen had already imagined the differ- ent vocal styles in his head, for example clean singing, growling, screaming, and that low chant- ing kind of voice that resembles Attila from Mayhem a bit, so he needed someone who could do that. Thebon is also from the same city as Steffen, altough my brother now lives in Bergen, so the choice wasn't difficult. And Thebon was happy to do it. They actually re- corded the vocals in Thebon's living room during four of five evenings. On Anomalia, the band presents a rather unique blend of extreme metal, with influences from a whole range of extreme music being spotted on the album, ranging from black metal to industrial metal to electronic. How did the current sound of the band come about? Who were some of the biggest influences for Khonsu? My brother is very open minded when it comes to music, and listens to alot of different genres. His main interest is actually different kinds of electronic music, from down-tempo, ambient, chillout, etc, and I guess he was influenced by that. I think one can hear the influences for elec- tronic music on Anomalia, not just the fact that he uses a lot of synth, but in the way that synth is used. Steffen got interested in extreme metal through me when he was in his teens, and lis- tened a lot to black and death metal when he was younger. But over the years I think he lost a bit interest in listening to metal, even though he makes it himself. So I actually believe it's rather rarely that he listens to metal, and that's kind of funny considering the fact that he makes ex- treme metal music himself. Anyway, the it comes to music and genres, i think the common de- nominator is atmosphere. With that I mean that Steffen is very attracted to atmospheric music, no matter what the genre is called. He is more at- tracted to that than to technical brilliance. I know he loves movie scores and modern classical com- posers as well. I think my brothers biggest strength is on creating powerful atmospheres and moods. When it comes to specific artists, im not quite sure who is his favorite. I know he loves a Norwegian ambient artist called "Biosphere" though. Steffen has also been inspired by alot of dark sci fi movies, especially "Blade Runner". With the large range of influences and elements that are present on Anomalia, what was the songwriting process behind the album like, spe- cifically in the recording of the music? Which was the most difficult song to write and ex- ecute? I can't really answer for Steffen on this one, as im not sure. I know he sits down with his guitar and synth and just improvises, and then builds on ideas that he finds captivating. Most of the re- cording for Anomalia was done in Steffens own studio, by himself. The main electric guitars were recorded in Morningstar Studio, and produced by me. The songs on Anomalia were all difficult to execute on guitar for their own reason. In terms of speed and precision for example, I remember that Inhuman States was pretty demanding for my brother to play. The music on Anomalia easily goes from me- lodic and beautiful to downright haunting and ugly at times, yet constantly keeping that epic feel throughout. Would it be possible to tell us more about the imagery and thoughts going through your head when writing the songs on Anomalia? I totally agree with you on that! It's difficult for me to answer for Steffen on this issue as well, so it's mostly speculation. But I know he is very in- terested in the dark parts of the human psyche, and I know he has a very creative mind so I guess he goes to a dark place when he is writing songs for Khonsu. I guess it's more of an emotional pro- cess that it's a "thinking" process, when he makes music. I guess he has to conjure up alot of so called negative emotions when he is making this kind of music. S. Gronbech also displays his versatility on the album, easily going from extreme metal riffing to neo-classical inspired leads on the keyboards and the guitars. With this being the first release of S, would it be possible to tell us more about his musical background? We are so fortunate that we have a father that is very interested in music, and we have always had access to his musical instruments and re- cording equipment from we were very young. So Steffen started playing on his guitars and also re- cording music from around the age of 6-7. He went to formal guitar training from about 8-15 years of age, and also formal keyboard training for about 5-6 years. But I know he resented prac- ticing, especially when it was other peoples music, so in a lot of ways I think he is self taught. Especially on piano he is self taught. He mostly improvises and creates own ideas when he plays. He has no formal education in music theory. One thing that particularly struck me was the imagery that was conjured, not only in the audi- tory aspects but also in the visual aspects, espe- cially the album artwork, with the fusion of a somewhat futuristic, sci-fi imagery and the morbid. Tell us more about the album artwork, how it came about and what does it symbolize? I totally agree with you that it's a fusion of futur- ism, sci-fi, and the morbid. I think that is one of Steffens main goals. The album artwork is made by Adrien Bousson at the Season of Mist graph- ics department, and he did a really great job. I know Steffen told him alot about what he wanted, and the main concept and ideas behind the music, which Adrien used as a starting point. There were some email back and forth, but the end result is great and I know my brother is very happy with it. The artwork tries to include eerie- ness, darkness, strangeness, horror elements, and sci fi elements, among other things. Like the visual imagery, it also seems that there is a running theme of death and the human condition, with songs such as Darker Days Coming and Inhuman States. Would it be pos- sible to tell us more about the lyrical concepts of Anomalia, and what the album title mean? Khonsu Anomalia [2012] (Season of Mist) movies and literature, mainly those dealing as you say with the darker aspects of the human condition. The concept and lyrics is about feeling estranged, isolated and detached, fearful, horri- fied, hateful, contemptious, depressed, etc. My brother is especially inspired by the writer H. P. Lovecraft and the genre called "cosmic horror of the unknown". It's not the kind of horror that plays on gore and brutality, but the kind that deals with existential dread and the idea that there is some kind of reality or "truth" to the uni- verse that is hidden from us, and that would frighten us out of our minds if we knew about it. The word Anomalia is latin for "anomaly", which means something that is strange, abnormal, or deviating in some way. I think it is a very fitting name for the album, not just because of the lyri- cal themes of strangeness, but because the music itself is unique as well. The recording of Anomalia involved S. and Thebon on the instruments and vocals respec- tively, but the band has a complete lineup when it comes to live performances. Will there ever come a day when Khonsu becomes a full- fledged band, and why or why not? It's true that we have a complete linup, and we actually have played live once already. That was at the infamous Inferno festival in Oslo, earlier this year. The live lineup is Steffen and me on guitars, Thebon on vocals, Shandy Mckay from Absu on bass, and also the famous norwegian drummer Kenneth Kapstad. Kenneth has played, and plays, in alot of different band in many genres, both jazz, metal, etc. I'm not sure if Khonsu will be a full-fledged band, that remains to see. But we hope to play at festivals next year. I dont think we will go on tour, mainly because we live in different cities and everybody is very I know that Steffen has been inspired both by busy with their own projects and work. A, A t&