SPRING BREAK! Which means no one is home, no one is buying records. Consequently, not much coming out this week, but there are a few gems sneaking in under the radar.
Illnath – 4 Shades of Me
Genre: Melodic Death
Origin: Copenhagen, Denmark
Label: Pitch Black
When the roll call for female-led death metal bands is rattled off, the likes of Illnath rarely seem to come up for discussion. That could be because Mona Beck's death growl is gender-less and primal, every bit as tough as any of the males in the genre.
Mortillery – Origin of Extinction
Genre: Thrash
Origin: Edmonton, Alberta
Label: Napalm
Been digging on Mortillery since getting their debut, Murder Death Kill, two years ago. While I enjoy a lot of neo-thrash bands that use updated, death-style vocals I do think for the most part those bands are missing an opportunity to reinforce what made thrash special: air raid vocals. Cara McCutchen fills that prescription here, tougher and grittier than the likes of Doro Pesch but never quite spilling over into cookie monster shit.
Necrocurse – Grip of the Dead
Genre: Death
Origin: Uddevalla, Sweden
Label: Pulverised
This project of Nifelheim singer Hellbutcher and the rhythm section shared by both Runemagick and Masticator cuts a chilling swath of Satanic evil on their debut LP, Grip of the Dead. It doesn't get much more old school than this, just unapologetic death metal fundamentals from beginning to end.
Also out today:
Adrenaline Mob – Coverta (Elm City)
Damnation Plan – The Wakening (Coroner)
Fit For A King – Creation/Destruction (Solid State)
Godyva – Alien Heart (Southern Brigade)
Heavatar – Opus I – All My Kingdoms (Napalm)
Hot Lunch – Hot Lunch (Tee Pee)
Horseneck – The World People Ever (Artery Recordings)
Napalm Death – Enemy Of The Music Business/Leaders Not Followers Re-Release (Secret)
Neroargento – Underworld (Coroner)
Nolentia – May the Hand That Holds the Match… (Kaotoxin)
Orange Goblin – A Eulogy For the Fans-Orange Goblin Live 2012 (Candlelight)
Patria – Nihil Est Monastica (Drakkar)
Rammstein – Videos 1995-2012 DVD (Density)
The Saint James Society – Bab(a/y)lon Rising (Tee Pee)
