Grethor @ Reverbnation

    Ok so the guys from Grethor asked I, The Black Metal Avenger, to check them out and give my thoughts. So that is what is going to happen. Grethor is a black metal band from Fredericksburg, Va. Originally they were a kind of 1349 band comprised of the members of various other bands in the Fredericksburg music scene. Featuring members from bands such as Lord, Kaemon, Death Mask, and Sanguinus. It was just a short termed project to play metal in the vein of Bathory, Dissection, and Venom. Eventually the members disbanded to put their full efforts into their full-time bands. The band Death Mask eventually decided to be put on a indefinite hiatus in order to persue reviving Grethor. Teaming up with former members of Apothys saw the band quickly change from the old black metal sound to a newer more melodic sound. Eventually Grethor lost members and has not quite found anyone to replace them. So in 2011 after not being to find worthy musicians in their local vicinity Grethor decided to go ahead write and record everything themselves. When I asked Asagorcus if we could expect any musical changes he said " Oh definitely...There will be more dark aggression, more epic themes, and better songwriting when compared to the past of Grethor."
 
    Although this is not a full review I do have to say that I really look forward to when the writing and recording is complete. The first song that I listened to was Monody For Artemis. I'm not sure exactly what that means but I like the sound of it. The song kicks off right into a hugely epic and unforgettable melody (or theme) which then leads the way towards the versus. The Vocals for this track could be a little more understandable. I really have no idea what the vocalist is saying except at the end where are Clean Vocals. the rest of the tracks do not have any vocals on them yet. Tenebrous is a monumental song in the vein of sad guitar themes and melancholic drumming. It will be interesting to hear the vocals when they are ready.

    Omega Point is where things get real interesting. It is one of the new tracks the band has written. While it is still just a demo it does show that Grethor is really evolving into something incredibly promising. It has the feeling of mourning and unrelenting depression while still being listenable and not completely boring. There is a bit more aggression as well as other interestingly fascinating drumming and guitar playing. The last track available on their page is titled Anomaly X. There are also no vocals since this is just a demo track with guitars and drums. It starts off with a pretty awesome chugging intro riff that leads right into some of the most aggressive music that i have heard. Just when you think this just a Death Metal song it gives way to the long sad melodies that seems to be one of their trademark sounds. Now the chorus for this song is very strange. It has a surprising upbeat against a melecholic strummed distorted guitar riff. The two different dynamics converge and become something truly unique.

     Grethor is definitely a band to look forward to hearing more of. They seem to be evolving into something that is entirely different among the black metal genre. They invoke the innovations of Emperor and the great metal guitar playing of Immortal while still pushing the boundaries even farther into the Avant-Garde.

Dimmu Borgir - Abrahadabra

Bio -
Dimmu Borgir ( /ˌdɪmuː ˈbɔrɡɪər/) is a Norwegian black metal band from Oslo, Norway, formed in 1993. Dimmu borgir means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, Faroese and Old Norse. The name is derived from a volcanic formation in Iceland,Dimmuborgir. The band has been through numerous line-up changes over the years; guitarist Silenoz and vocalist Shagrath are the only founding members remaining.^[1][2]


Dimmu Borgir really doesn't need much of an introduction because if you have not heard of them then you really need to get out of your mom's basement. But make sure its only at night because the sun will surely blind you while burning your pathetically pale skin. 


On this album Dimmu Borgir decided to put Satan on the down low. I guess they figured he had been working so hard that he should rest for a little bit. Instead they invoke the prophet named H.P Lovecraft. And as we all know H.P Lovecraft discovered the Necronomicon. Which is really what Aliester Crowley wished he had been able to do. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on your perspective, Lovecraft became the one true prophet. And if Satan was taking a little vacation then I suppose the next best thing was to invoke the Ancient Ones. Which is exactly what Dimmu Borgir have done.


The first track was a little mood music designed to open your senses to receive the maddening invocations and cursed revelations of the horrors to come. The second track Born Treacherous begins with some Rob Zombie type guitar playing that is rather annoying. But the song does get better. The third track is one the stands out a lot. And that is because it starts like a Queen song. But that also gets better. As far as a band sounding big and epic Dimmu Borgir really has every other band beat. It might have something to do with the amount of musicians that worked on their albums. But I digress This track features a strange guest vocalist which does actually add some mysterious textures to the song. Gateways was designed to make you say Gateways. Creating an infinite paradox that eventually tears down the walls of reality, releasing the darkness from the depths of the cosmic terror. 


Once this album is done and the conversion into mad cosmic horrors which lie beyond the great wall of sleep is complete. Your brain will be transported into the depths where you will learn the ways of the intergalactic monstrosities.




Check out: 


http://site.dimmu-borgir.com/


And remember to go out and buy Abrahadabra to welcome horror and insanity into the rest of your pitiful lives.

Melechesh - The Epigenesis

Bio - The band started their career in Jerusalem (and Bethlehem) and operated from there between 1993–1998; however, they have resided mainly in Amsterdam since 1998 for several personal, professional and demographic reasons. The band’s release in 1995 of the official demo As Jerusalem Burns... and 7" EP The Siege of Lachish attracted attention from both underground metal fans and local authorities. Melechesh were accused of "Dark Cult activities" by the law enforcement authorities of the city of Jerusalem, especially by a frontpage newspaper article which twisted some facts. The charges were eventually dropped.

In 1996, The band released their debut album As Jerusalem Burns...Al´Intisar on an American black metal record label; then newly recruited bassist Al´Hazred completed the line-up. This marked the band as the first signed Non -Israeli band from the Middle East. And also First international signed metal band from Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

Due to various personal, professional, and demographic reasons the band members had to relocate. 1998 armed with a new promo CD "Mesopotamian Metal" and after a farewell gig in Jerusalem, Israel, Melechesh relocated to France and the Netherlands . Lord Curse remained in Jerusalem and later moved to the USA to continue with his Art studies (and now works for George Lucas' ILM company), hence, the band had to recruit a new drummer. Absu mainman and drummer Proscriptor soon filled the vacant position. From that point on, Melechesh have released two full-length albums: Djinn (2001), dealing with Mesopotamian mythology, and Sphynx (2003), dealing with Mesopotamian/Sumerianmythology while always keeping the dark and Near Eastern occult themes close to their hearts. The band recorded their fourth and highly acclaimed album Emissaries which is available in Europe (Osmose Productions) and by The End Records in the United States and Canada . Meanwhile, Xul has replaced Proscriptor as the band’s fulltime drummer. A documentary was begun^[2] filming the founder, about his plight to create the band. But it was discontinued as the director stepped down, it's still in progress with a new director though.^[3] Curious spirits can read Ashmedi's biographical articles which reveal very personal information about Melechesh's mainman. The articles are posted on several reputable websites and printed magazines around the world, such as Decibel and Legacy magazines.

In March 2010, Melechesh revealed that on April 10 they will enter the studio to record their fifth album for a period of 4–5 weeks. However the band spent almost 12 weeks in the studio perfecting the album with every possible detail. "The Epigenesis" is set to be released via Nuclear Blast records on 1 October 2010 (Europe/world) and 27 October (USA). The album is already gaining critical acclaim with several cover stories across the world and being rated number 1 on the magazine critics' play-lists.

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    Melechesh is an anomaly of the natural evolution of black metal music. They are one of many examples where a culture receives music and ideas from another culture and then creates their own music in response. This transference often results in giving rise to a plethora of ideas that ebb and flow into new genres of music. Such as when the USA recieved what we call NWOBHM and gave our response in the form of Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, Testament, Slayer, ect. Hopefully this band will spearhead a new age of Black Metal. Using the term Mesopotamian Metal to describe their bands sound they may very well inspire a movement of musicians that will mix with all the different cultures in the world. And as far as I am concerned this is their first album that will be remembered as one of the most influential pieces of the great international music exchange. It may very well be refered to by later metal musicians like Diamond Heads - Lighting To the Nations, or Metallica's - Master Of Puppets, is commonly done with the big names relevant in metal music today. 

    The albums first track flows with a middle eastern vibe combined with the feel for a nice heavy drum beat. The vocals are harsh and unrelenting. My favorite track on this album is Illumination: The Face Of Shamash because its a massive epic of achievement on the album. The Epigenesis continues the amazingly intoxicating mastery of majestic song writing. And there are times were you feel transported to the past into a time where the greatest fear was real and not just fear itself. The danger of shadows lurking, haunting, and killing the people of the ancient lands. 

Go check out: http://www.melechesh.com/

Make sure to buy their cd The Epigenesis. Sit in a dark room and listen. Until madness overtakes your consciousness and the existence of this world becomes the desert where The Mad Abdul Alhazred descended.  

Black Sun Aeon - Routa 2010

Bio - The year 2008 started aeon of the black sun when the founder and sole member Tuomas Saukkonen decided to start a solo career beside the continuing leadership of Before The Dawn and The Final Harvest. The debut album “The Darkness Walks Beside Me” followed soon in the beginning of 2009 and was praised by critics and fans of majestic, melodic doom metal with death metal twist.

    Few very carefully selected gigs were also played with session members and BLACK SUN AEON shared the stage with bands like Samael and did a powerful festival debut at Summer Breeze festivals. What many thought to be a simple side project and one time release has become a solid one man band and a sharpest blade in the musical armory of Tuomas Saukkonen.    

    Multi instrumental and highly productive “one man army” has also been recognized by Finnish metal fans since Tuomas was voted as 2# in musician of the year category in Finnish Metal Awards and new BLACK SUN AEON will only underline the strenght in songwriting, musicianship, production and vision when double album -ROUTA- is released in 1.4.2010. A massive theme album about cruel but beautiful Finnish winter including 2 albums in total lenght of 80mins.

    This album Routa is really something to behold. With Routa meaning "frost in the ground" or "ground frost" in the Finnish language, it would be easy to assume just by the album name alone that you are about to hear yet another Black Metal band  wretch and moan about the dark cold wastes of a depressive hell.  It is equally misleading when looking at the track list to have the same misconception: 

1. Core Of Winter
2. Frozen
3. Sorrowsong
4. Routa
5. Wreath of Ice
6. Dead Sun Aeon
7. Cold

Let us not forget that this is a 2 Disk Album:

1. Funeral of World
2. River
3. Frozen Kingdom
4. Wanderer
5. The Beast
6. Silence
7. Apocalyptic Reveries

    But surprisingly Black Sun Aeon is not a Black Metal band. The very first track Core Of Winter evokes more of an Epic almost Gothic feel. Its slow tempo and heavy guitars has a feel similar to Doom Metal yet contains elements like keyboards that really make the track have an tremendously powerful vibe.  The second track starts immediately into what I would consider very 80's sounding similar to an Hair Band. Which I really don't like. But once it gets passed that the DOOM comes in heavy with gritty Death Metal vocals and a drudging guitar riff. I'm not a fan of the chorus of this song but the interlude was very cool because it reminded me of something along the lines of a very short Opeth inspired melody. Sorrowsong is a track that sounds a little similar to the first track with the exception that it featured Death Metal vocals more prominently. Overall the album, or dual album succeeds in delivering songs that are rich with imagination yet not overly complicated technical guitar playing or impossible drumming. The vocals often balance each other between Black/Death Metal ranges and exceptional clean vocals similar to Arcturus.  And additional note worth mentioning is Routa the album title track is nothing short of amazing. 

Check out: http://www.blacksunaeon.com

And buy the CD wherever you can find it!

- The Black Metal Avenger