Formed in 2004, this band initially had to change their name from Onslaught to Warbringer because there was another UK thrash metal band that owned that name. After reading mixed reviews for this release, I've concluded that the album is not entirely original but overall it was decent. These guys play thrash metal in the vein of Exodus. At first, I didn't think much of it. However, I thought that I'd give it a few more spins to rule out if it was unique or just a bore. I'd say it's a little bit of both.

These guys are young (between the ages of 17-22) and do show potential. In terms of the music, the guitars by John Laux and Adam Carroll were good but not entirely unique. I did like the leads. They were amazing. The tempos are a mixture of slow to moderate speeds yet at other times they are just downright fast. However, on one intro the guitar was entirely clean ("On The Crack Of Dawn"). Again musically, the sounds were pretty ordinary. The overall thrash efforts weren't as intriguing as I would've hoped. I thought the last track ("A Dead Current") was simply a waste of a song. I'm not sure why they included it on here because it made the album sound less interesting. They should've really kept it to 10 tracks/40 minutes and that's it no instrumental.

As far as the lyrics go, they sing about war, violence and death. Nothing really impressive or astounding as far as that goes. Of course the title of the album is "War Without End". But in terms of the lyrics they could've been better thought out. The vocals by John Kevill were kind of repetitive because it was just screaming by him throughout the entire album. There were some backup vocals however which made it less monotonous. John as a whole I don't think was vocally effective because it's boring to be just screaming through an entire release. That's my standpoint on the issue.

The production was alright though not legendary. The drums (by Nic Ritter), guitars, and vocals were well mixed which was a plus. Actually, this album was produced by Bill Metoyer. He is considered to be a great thrash metal producer. The sound quality overall was good. Nothing that was lacking on that front. He did do well with this. The album as a whole isn't all that bad but they needed to focus better on the songwriting lyrically and musically. The rhythm guitars just didn't strike me as being very effective. Like I mentioned though, the leads are awesome. No dispute there. But the rhythm guitar just wasn't very stimulating. If they were going to stay in the vein of Exodus and keep up that sound, then they should've made a better of an effort to do so. The fact that this wasn't the case simply brought the album down and made it less effective than if they did incorporate this on here.

Rate: 65%.

Reviewed By Death8699 ([email protected]).

Well, Rellik has released their full-length 10 tracks of extreme war inspired death metal!!! Mike Coniglio leading the massacre of this quartet with brilliant riffs and Johnny Dove contributing awesome leads. Then, an array of Coniglio's low end/guttural vox and the higher screams of might adding variety on this end! Trust me, this is not fattish lip service Rellik has really established themselves not only contributing intelligent lyrics with well thought out riffs Phil dishing out utter blast beats with double bass flurries and Brandon backing up the guitar onslaught with precision on bass.

I tell you only a few extreme death metal acts I cling to Krisiun is one of them and Rellik is up there also because they to me are not mindless in the guitar riffs or vocals. These guys have music that draws you in captivating the listener. This is what death metal nowadays is lacking: intelligence to creating riffs only unique to that band as Chuck Schuldiner did with Death and Control Denied. Johnny way improved on guitar (BC Rich beast!) with everyone actually busting their asses to put out a unique release which I hope will be known worldwide if not already.

If you admire precision in death metal then this release is a MUST have!!! Not something that will bore the listener with half assed riff structures, boring vocals/drums/bass like a lot of DM acts succumbing to nowadays. I think that many of people have lost interest in DM because of the established acts have become so dulled out I won't mention any here now most of you still involved in the genre know which bands I'm referring to.

The re-recording of 'Thy Kingdom Crushed' now with MUCH better production, variety of vocals Johnny mainly contributing on this end!), plus everyone seeming to click as ONE. All 10 tracks purely unique sounding and for awesome lyric portrayals on their site so check it out!!! Since Chicago is wholly lacking in extreme death metal as I mentioned previously well 'Heritage of Abomination' is a release that should be owned by anyone into this particular style.

As it is my goal to represent metal acts objectively there really are no complaints on my end in terms of musicianship, quality, and intelligence.

Rate: 90%.

Reviewed By Death8699 ([email protected]).

I'm new to hearing industrial/electronic type of metal... But this release has gotten me hooked! At first, my impression was that I could never really get into these styles. Though now I know I'm wrong about that! 'A Greater Darkness' explores many different changes throughout the entire album.

From the beginning, it represents a more death metal influenced type of sound. But wholly on this album the atmosphere is grim and filled with many different tempo changes. I'm not much into the electronic type of songs but I am still giving it a chance for me to get used to.

I haven't heard their previous releases... Though they've been around since 1989! Pretty damn amazing to me. I just heard about this band by a friend who's not into mainstream type of stuff. I'm not either really nor is this band.

Their writing style is kind of weird...some songs are pretty heavy with like I mentioned a more type of death metal sound to them. But then they linger into a more industrial type of reflection. The vocals vary from heavy throat to a more eerie tone. Pretty interesting. The guitars especially on 'Antidote' are brutal then there's fluctuations between that and the industrial sound. All of the tracks to me are good but just plain eccentric.

They sing about the apocalypse, technology, and hate. It's not mindless Satanic stuff that other bands sing about. Their songs are well thought out. I'm more motivated now to actually purchase their older material. I've heard some...it's a little different than 'A Greater Darkness' but for the most part really good sounding.

The riffs here are unique in that they are slow at times but pretty catchy. Especially the first song that I mentioned 'Antidote'. Wholly different type of work! There really aren't any solos just mainly rhythms... That to me is OK but I would just like to have heard some leads. I suppose they just wanted to focus more on the rhythm guitars.

Some songs are totally electronic which is an acquired taste to like I suppose. They mix it with a few songs yet others are only electronic. For the most part, they're mixed. I kind of admire this because like I mentioned it's not just one genre they're attacking it's a few throughout this entire album. Do yourself a favor and pick up this unique release!

Rate: 90%.

Reviewed By Death8699 ([email protected]).

Columbian based band here shows some promise to their nine track release 'Rain of Fire'. The opening track has a Hitler speech in the background. This is how they are portraying their image. It's difficult to tell what genre of metal they fall in because most of it resembles death metal with a heavy thrash metal influence. Death metal is probably the closest genre that they represent because of the growling vocals, heavy/thick guitars and somewhat technical drums. The band calls their style as being "deathrash metal".

As for their lineup, Leo Pinzón takes charge on vocals, Alex Giraldo bass and guitars, Oscar Labrador drums session plus engineering and Johann Yate who solos are on the Skid Row cover of 'Slave to the Grind'. The length of this release slightly exceeds 45 minutes including the cover song.

Musically, the band poses to have some definite potential. Though thoroughly they need to design guitar riffs that are a bit more free flowing. They seem to be all over the place. The production is decent. Though this issue won't be the case if the band ends up getting signed.

Rate: 70%.

Reviewed By Death8699 ([email protected]).

I'd have to conclude that this is Deicide's last good album because not only does it carry with it the similar characteristics of their previous releases but it still contains the originality in the guitar riffs definitely. Of course lyrically Glen Benton writes his usual hatred towards the higher power or God if you will plus the album cover depicts Jesus Christ simply looking like a demonic figure as Glen utters that we be "free of Jesus Christ". Honestly, I have never really been into the satanic lyrics just the music is what got me hooked to Deicide. Now that the Hoffman brothers are not longer in the band Glen says in a Terrorizer magazine that they are the "ding-dong brothers". Not much respect for the amazing riffs and solos they've been able to display their talent but we won't touch on that further in this review.

There is less high-pitched vocals here though there are still backup screams though not as demonic as their earlier releases like 'Legion' (1992) or their ultra demonic debut 'Deicide' (1990). In terms of the music it's still brutal and catchy as hell. The solos are also amazing especially the numerous and flawless ones throughout the entire release check out especially the intro to 'Slave to the Cross'. The guitar riffs aren't as technical as their older material but still very noteworthy and heavy as all hell.

I'd have to say that they were NOT as a whole lazy on this release it seems to still portray their talent in songwriting. Though they exhibited less blast beating drums by Steve Asheim he still does a great job staying in sync with the guitars. There isn't a track on here that I dislike at all because they still proved to the metal community that after the years of being one of the leading Floridian death metal acts showing us they can still kick major ass!

If you are eager to know which tracks to try first I would suggest 'Believe The Lie', 'I Am No One', 'Bastards of Christ' and 'Serpents of the Light'. This will give you an idea of what the album has to offer some great tracks and I would consider them to be the best ones on the album.

The production is by Deicide and Scott Burns - Scott now retired still does a great job production wise. The album is loud and evenly mixed to near perfection. All of the tracks in great synchrony, heavy and hate filled Deicide is notorious for. The artwork by Nizen R. Lopez quite sick and portraying the son of God as demonic as possible.

Glen's vocals are deep and anything but boring because of the backup voice to go with the insane music. The Hoffman brothers still amaze me with their talent in riffing and soloing. It's too bad they are no longer a part of the band because they seemed to me to captivate the listener in every release up until this album. I wouldn't really recommend purchasing 'Insineratehymn' (2000), 'Scars of the Crucifix' (2004) or 'In Torment in Hell' (2001) because these releases are way way below their talent. They seemed on these releases to just put in half assed work that's why I consider 'Serpents..' to be their last good album.

Even though 'The Stench of Redemption' (2006) is their effort to redeem themselves I still think it's lacking because the Hoffman brothers to me were the core of the band. 'Serpents..' is an album that depicts Deicide's true talent in songwriting plus its originality in every respect even though the lyrics are anti-Christian the music draws the listener in to every single song. Anyone who thinks that 'Serpents...' was half-assed well they don't truly admire the amazing songwriting Deicide was notorious for from their self-titled release to 'Legion' to 'Once upon the Cross' (1995) to 'Serpents of the Light'.

If you are a true death metal fan then you need 'Serpents of the Light' to add to your collection because it is truly remarkable in pretty much every single respect!

Rate: 85%

Reviewed By Death8699 ([email protected])

Wow, I don't think that it gets more evil than this! "Vobiscum Satanas" is an utter abomination to say the least. There's so much on these 8 tracks which are filled with lyrics that pretty much tackle Satanism entirely. This is black metal played in it's most extreme form. What else to say about this release of a pure holocaust! Featured here on this lineup is Emperor Magus Caligula on vocals/bass, Lord Ahriman on guitars, Typhos on guitars and Alzazmon on drums. They have gone through several lineup changes over the years but that hasn't stopped them from producing black metal to its mightiest extreme. It's a shame that this is only a little bit over 35 minutes in length.

The music itself features guitars playing at utterly spell bounding tempos most of the whole way through this release. Not too much variety there but that doesn't take away from the power the album exhibits. Also, the guitars on this release were tuned down to E-Flat which is the tuning they have always used since their first release "The Secret Of The Black Arts." The blast beating drums is featured on this entire release except for a few slower tempos but not that many. Also, some drums that contain fast double bass but it isn't prevalent throughout this whole release. The guitars contain tremolo picking almost through every track. It doesn't really change much here because I think their focus was to pound out some seriously evil sounds. They succeeded too by using minor chord progressions all throughout the album! This is about as dark as it gets. Since it was my first Dark Funeral release I'd have to say it was quite amazing.

This was a re-released version of this album which contains 4 bonus tracks of them playing these songs live. Vocal wise Emperor Magus Caligula exhibits some pretty extreme high end screaming which is what's featured almost entirely throughout this whole release. There are some tracks with him just bellowing some low end blasphemous lyrics. This is featured on the title track as well as a few other tracks as well. I can't say that I'm really into the lyrics but nevertheless Dark Funeral has really caught my ear. The overall production, mixing, and engineering is definitely spell binding. This is an earlier release too and it simply dominates. I couldn't get into the live tracks though I didn't really care for the sound quality. But I don't really like live tracks anyway. The fact that I got the re-released version is ok nevertheless.

For me, all of the tracks were well composed. Though I like "Enriched By Evil" and the title track the most. But like I said, there weren't any tracks on here that I disliked. This is a pure Satanic black metal release. The fact that they didn't use keyboards to make this more chilling was really awesome. It was the vocals, guitar and overall sound plus lyrics which achieved their success in making it captivating. The sound quality is good as well though I couldn't really get into the live versions of these songs. Not that they're bad I just can't get into any bands that have live tracks on their album. All 8 tracks on this are good. But like I said, I don't like live tracks to be totally honest.

Rate: 95%

Reviewed By Death8699 ([email protected]).    

This band belts out some serious old school death metal in the vein of Cannibal Corpse. The songs are filled with all different time signatures and some even hyper blasts! The leads feature mostly sweeps, arpeggios, etc. Vocal wise it's Adam Scott (lead guitar/lead vocals) belting out some deep throat. Tom (rhythm guitar/vocals), Dave (bass/vocals) and Jim (drums/vocals) also contribute some high end screams for variety.

What I like about this album is that there is no compromise musically speaking. These guys are passionate about what they do produce which is this old school sound, gruesome lyrics, and awesome production. The music just flows with all sorts of riffs... I think that these guys will be around for a while belting out non-compromising works. I haven't heard their debut yet but I'm sure it's in the same vein of this release.

Guitars are way tuned down I think to B-flat to produce the lowest form of "death rot" as they call it type of music. The whole album is filled with tons of awesome sounds. One riff in particular sounds a bit like Slayer's

'Mandatory Suicide' at least the intro part of that song. It's what it reminds me of at least.

None of the lyrics are in this insert but you can read a few on their main web site. They sing mostly about gore, horror, etc. Amazing that this band has been around since 1997! Now with an awesome lineup they've produced some work which is definitely worth checking out.

After several listens to this album, I would say that Cardiac Arrest needs more attention from those into the Old School style of death metal. The reason is because a lot of bands over the years change their style and go to crap musically. Cardiac Arrest doesn't seem like a band that will follow this path. They're going to be around a lot longer than most of these style of bands.

Songs that are really worth checking out are 'In His Name They Spill Blood' and the title track. Honestly, I thought the whole album was killer. I'm just more into the guitar's sound than anything. Adam seriously shreds on

pretty much all tracks. I like the variety in the vocals too. It isn't just low end bellowing like old Cannibal Corpse via Chris Barnes era.

Rate: 90%.

Reviewed By Death8699 ([email protected]).

For a debut release, Cardiac Arrest simply sticks with the old school death metal sound and conquers it. The album has all of the elements that make this genre sound revived again. I haven't heard this type of Metal from any newer bands really. It is a good refreshing sound to hear this being played as it is on here.

In terms of the riffs and music overall it sounds like B-flat tuned guitars by Adam Scott (lead guitar/lead vocals) who plays some complex rhythms as well as some slower ones too. So it isn't just blast beating by Jim Deabenderfer (drums/vocals). Their tempos vary. Dave "Amsterdamn" Holland (bass/vocals) makes a solid effort here as well. The leads by Adam are really awesome. I mean they're filled with arpeggios, speed picking, tapping, and whammy bar inductions that stagger the imagination.

The vocals are mainly deep throat by Adam spewing out gore filled lyrics with Jim and Dave on backup vox. Everything seems to fit here I mean the music, the production, etc. They don't play just boring death metal. These guys mix the blast beating with slower tempos that totally kick ass. I'm assuming that this was their goal here was to stagger the listener with sheer death rot.

All of the songs really deserve praise because these guys simply know how the hell to redefine old school death metal. Some of their songs which have some ghastly radio intros spewing forth inappropriate words which mixes well with what these guys sing about. That would be mostly horror, gore, etc. It's a shame that the album is just a bit under 40 minutes in length. I would've liked to hear a more lengthy sound of their music!

There aren't any songs here that are just mediocre. I'd say all of them deserve praise because the bass/drums/guitars are just awesome. It's amazing that they were able to fit in everything so much to a point to where all of it rules. Honestly, the first time that I heard this I was like "damn, I need to listen to this at least 10 times"! The talent these guys possess is incredible. The song titles are pretty brutal which fits with their death rot signatures.

Check out their MySpace page here: http://www.myspace.com/deathrot. You can also visit their main web site at http://www.cardiacarrest666.com/. Be sure to pick up this album first then their latest which is called "Cadaverous Presence". The reason is because "Morgue Mutilations" will give you some idea as to how these guys sound if I haven't already made myself clear about that. Once you get it, then pickup their latest.

This genre according to Cardiac Arrest will never die. I hope that they will inspire more bands to get in this kind of sound kicking yet again. Do yourself a favor and get "Morgue Mutilations"...You'll understand more of what I'm talking about. Way kick ass songs. Check out the track "Carnage Your Fate" on their MySpace page and you'll get a little gist of what I've been raving about in this review.

Rate: 90%.

Reviewed By Death8699 ([email protected]).

Thanks goes to the band for sending me this 60 minute self-titled debut that explores a blend of thrash metal and hard rock with some intriguing groove to each track. According to Alex their guitarist "we play what we like", which is entirely evident because Burned In Effigy offers some innovation to the metal scene. With Jared on guitar and vocals as well as Zak on drums plus vocals, their sound offers an intriguing style because it isn't just screaming or extremely harsh. Their vocal output offers to it a blend of different styles that give plenty of unique sounds which remind me of old school metal with a newer tone.

The recording as a whole turned out really good - each instrument well mixed overall. The guitar riffs have an intriguing style to them because they reflect a hard rock/thrash/blues blend in which every track has a bit of each style to it. The tempos aren't exceptionally fast, each song is entirely unique and the solos are blues based.

Sixteen tracks are a lot for a debut though each one carries it's own impressive and creative blend. The fact that this band sent me their album is an eye-opener because it's good for promotional purposes. Readers should visit their web site and buy this album to form their own opinion. It won't disappoint!

Rate: 85%,

Reviewed By Death8699 ([email protected]).