Iron Curtain – Metal Gladiator
Speed/Thrash/Heavy Metal from Spain
Dying Victims Productions
Looking at the album covers and photos of the band, this is exactly the music you’d think it is. And that’s not a bad thing at all! This is 6 tracks, and 1 intro, of just kick-ass heavy metal music. The guitar work is excellent. Blisteringly fast, and technical, yet rhythmic and perfectly paced. The Saxon, Thin Lizzy, and NWOBHM influences run deep in this release, and what you have is a fun EP worthy of that road trip with your friends.
Primordial Serpent – The Funereal Winter
Black Metal from Canada
Independent
Primordial Serpent is one of the most consistent projects in black metal today. All of his full-lengths, EPS, and demos have been consistently good. This is riff-driven black metal at its finest. I’ve talked at length about Primordial Serpent since discovering the one-man project and will continue to share this immensely talented artist. The Funereal WInter comes off the heels of Primordial Serpent’s excellent LP from January, Adversary of God. The production is definitely a little more frigid, but the fury is still there. I love the lead work on this EP as well.
Hyperdontia – Deranged
Death Metal from Denmark/Türkiye
Me Saco un Ojo Records
I originally started Sounds of the Void just to talk about death metal, and why I love where death metal was in our world. There seems to be a new class of death metal that is really taking charge. I’d have to really sit down and think about who all of these bands are because there are so many who do nothing but release quality year after year. One of those bands is absolutely Hyperdontia. In 2021 the band released their latest full-length, Hideous Entity. This was in my top 10 albums of 2021 for a reason. If I were to show someone who has been away from death metal for a while, where the genre is in the 2020s, I would show them this album first.
Deranged is not only a continuation of 2021’s release but a natural progression of the growing songwriting ability of one of death metal’s greatest acts today. this album is meticulously put together to give you something that feels natural, and raw. The songwriting gives off a vibe of contained chaotic horror. So far this is my pick for EP of the year. Oh, and real quick, the bass work for this release is incredible.
Hot Graves – Plaguewielder
Death/Black/Thrash Metal/Crust from Florida
Gurgling Gore
I’ll be honest, I was not familiar with Hot Graves when I saw this album was being released. What a shame because I have been missing out. Plaguewielder has a little bit of everything. Just look at all the covered genres above and after listening you’ll realize that this is a band that wanted to do a little bit of everything. Most of the time when bands do that, they release a mess of an album not worthy of our time. Hot Graves have released not only an album that works under all of those monikers but is downright fun to listen to.
On the first track, you have a blisteringly fast metal anthem with a steed of shred fighting onwards, but by the second track, Infinite Glimmering Chasm, you have a cleverly slowed-down, very beautiful piece of music. This album is a marathon that is worth running if you experience a large chunk of the spectrum of metal in just two tracks.
Dawn Ray’d – To Know the Light
Black Metal from the UK
Prosthetic Records
When I first heard about the Unlawful Assembly in 2017, I knew this band was special. I’m not gonna lie, I believe what led to me hearing Dawn Ray’d was the Deafheaven “radio” feature on Spotify. However, this band is more than just a modern black metal band bucking the system and not utilizing typical imagery (which I guess would deem them hipster among the trvest and kvltist), but we have a band that is truly making great music with a message we can get behind and believe in.
Two full-length releases later, and a political and social landscape that is insane, Dawn Ray’d just get better. The message is solid and inspiring, and the music is pissed off and yet hopeful at the same time. To Know the Light shines a light on several issues such as class segregation, trans rights, and lifting up those from marginalized corners of our world. This is an album, and Dawn Ray’d is a band you can feel good about supporting.
Lamp of Murmuur – Saturnian Bloodstorm
Black Metal from California
Argento records
Lamp of Murmuur is perhaps the most followed and beloved one-man black metal project today. Rightfully so! 2021s Submission and Slavery is a modern masterpiece. I believe people will look at that record the way they look at Transylvanian Hunger. With Saturnian Hunger, you have a very different album, with a completely different vibe, but what that just shows is the absolute brilliance of M. The entity behind the Lamp.
For those that know black metal, you’ll probably hear a hefty influence right off the bat, and that is Immortal. Specifically early 2000s Immortal, even more specifically Sons of Northern Darkness era Immortal. But those saying that this is an Immortal rip-off have no idea what they are hearing. While the influence is certainly there, and this is a hot take for sure, I don’t believe that Immortal could have written an album this good. To be able to exist, and bend, and morph yourself under the guise of black metal in such a short amount of time is extremely daring, and Lamp of Murmuur is one of the only ones that have been able to do it so masterfully.
The songwriting is a feat I haven’t heard in straight-up black metal in so long. The driving force behind this album is riffs, and they are unmatched in 2023. To feel wholly familiar, but also refreshing at the same time is a tough job that is executed flawlessly.
Night Demon – Outsider
Heavy Metal from California
Century Media Records
It has been a long time since I have heard a concept album I have loved as much as Outsider. This album is everything. This is what heavy metal in 2023 should sound like and beyond.
The story is a sci-fi alternate reality filled with alternate realities, portals to other dimensions, and the horrific realities of loneliness and alienation. At the core of this album though for those who aren’t interested in the cinematic aspect of this album, you are treated to a fast-paced, pedal to the metal heavy metal masterpiece with raging guitar work, thunderous drumming, and incredible vocals. Meanwhile, you have tracks such as Beyond that Grave that slow it down and reflect the somber nature of the story’s narrative. But don’t be afraid, the guitar and bass work will absolutely make you stand up and play that air guitar in a way that you haven’t done since your first Maiden or Priest fix.
This has been a constant for me since it came out a few weeks ago, and will absolutely be talked about throughout the year and will definitely be brought up on in the year lists.
Kommand – Death Age
Death Metal from California
20 Buck Spin
20 Buck Spin continues to back absolute quality young bands. Kommand has done an excellent job at channeling death metal, and everything that we want to hear as fans of this genre. I’ve talked at length about my love for fans like Bolt Thrower, and Entombed, and Kommand may have released the absolute closest thing to that on the American front. I try to keep my reviews short and to the point, but this may be even shorter than normal. This is kick-ass OSDM that does an excellent job of creating an atmosphere of absolute brutality and warfare. One thing I do here is for a young American band, there are a ton of riffs that make me think of the old Finnish death metal scene that is often overlooked, and I was stoked to hear that.
This is definitely my favorite death metal album so far this year, and I can’t wait to hear what Kommand does next.
That does it for this month. I have a few things planned over at Cave Dweller Music this month, and of course, check out the Instagram. That’s where the party is! Oh, and also, I am back on Spotify and have a killer playlist you should follow. Thanks!
