This week’s Heavy Music HQ reviews include releases from Armored Saint, Blindead 23, Burial Clouds, Desecresy, Dimmu Borgir, Embrace Of Souls, Goddess, Hellevate, Impure Wilhelmina, Kurnugia,m Marmozets and Skip Danko B-Movie Road Club.
The ratings are on a 5-star scale.
Armored Saint – Emotion Factory Reset (Metal Blade)
Armored Saint are among heavy metal’s greatest “what if?” propositions – a band who appeared destined for chart-topping success but had to be content with underground hero status instead. More than 40 years on from their debut full-length, they issue their ninth LP, Emotion Factory Reset. We’ll ignore the AI generated cover art and focus on the music. Their workmanlike, earnest ethos remains apparent. There’s a degree of filler, and evidence that the group had difficulty crafting enough standout material.
Certain songs fail to resonate fully; a cut like “It’s A Buzzkill” feels somewhat underdone. But when the band hits the mark – led by seemingly ageless frontman Josh Bush’s potent voice – the results are worth the price of admission. Opener “Close To The Bone” bustles with enthusiasm and “Not On Your Life” channels classic metal. “Hit A Moonshot” is an energetic highlight and “Buckeye” injects more of a rock vibe, infusing some well-placed slide guitar. Emotion Factory Reset indicates that Armored Saint doesn’t care about trends or landing on Spotify playlists. Instead, this is a veteran act revelling in the process after all these years.
Rating: 3.5
(Brendan Crabb)
Blindead 23 – Deuterium (Peaceville)
Members of the Polish avant-garde metal band Blindead 23 (the successor to the long-running Blindead) have some pretty impressive credits on their resume. That includes Behemoth, Katatonia, Vader and Decapitated. After an EP in 2024, they emerge with their full-length debut Deuterium.
Their lengthy compositions leave plenty of room for exploration and frequent style shifts. They move from catchy sections with melodic vocals to intense parts with harsh vocals to experimental and progressive sections. Both 10-plus minutes in length, “Immersion II” and “Worst Laid Plans” exemplify the ebbs and flows of Blindead 23’s eclectic writing. Some parts are more compelling than others, but Deuterium‘s dynamics and musicianship make it a worthwhile listen for prog and avant-garde aficionados.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Burial Clouds – Burn Holy (Self)
With a new lineup comes a new sense of danger to Burial Clouds’ post-doom metal on Burn Holy. While their debut album Last Days Of A Dying World lingered and drifted around, the songs on this record are heightened with a sharpened focus. “Ashen Altar” and “Screaming, Drowning, Pacified” rely on the shrieking wails of vocalist Marina Lavelle and deep bellows from guitarist/backing vocalist Bryce Ramsey.
Burial Clouds reach for ethereal heights on the acoustic ballad “Forget Me Not” and piano work during closer “Eyes Without Light.” These tunes allow Lavelle to put time into smoother vocal tones, which is a small part of making Burn Holy almost surreal in its overall pacing.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Marsicano)
Desecresy – The Secret Of Death (Xtreem)
The Finnish death metal band Desecresy started as a duo, but for the past decade or so, it has been a one-man project with Tommi Grönqvist not only handling music and vocals, but also production and even the artwork. The Secret Of Death is his ninth album.
The intensity rarely wavers, with tempos mostly staying slow to mid-paced. Things quicken from time to time, but deliberation is the main objective. The songs are pretty standard, though well-executed. The closer “Vanishing Existence” is the outlier, incorporating cinematic atmospheres before the death metal devastation kicks in. It’s the album’s most creative composition, ending The Secret Of Death on a high note.
Rating: 3
(Chad Bowar)
Dimmu Borgir – Grand Serpent Rising (Nuclear Blast)
Eight long years have elapsed since the last album from Norwegian symphonic black metal legends Dimmu Borgir. Vocalist Stian “Shagrath” Thoresen and guitarist Sven “Silenoz” Kopperud remain the creative core of the band. Guitarist Galder exited, with Damage (guitar), Victor Brandt (bass), Daray (drums) and Gerlioz (keyboards) rounding out the current lineup.
They aren’t quite as prominent as on Eonion, but orchestrations and choirs remain core to Dimmu Borgir’s approach. There are nods to the old school with second wave black metal moments and a couple of songs in Norwegian, including the potent “Ulvgjeld & Blodsodel.” They also move forward, with some complex arrangements and modern motifs. The album flows really well, with varied intensities, speeds and styles. There is minimal filler in the 13 tracks, with some of the most memorable including the dynamic “As Seen In The Unseen,” the grandiose “Repository Of Divine Transmutation” and the symphonic “At The Precipice Of Convergence.” With Grand Serpent Rising, Dimmu Borgir show why they have been among the genre’s elite for decades.
Rating: 4
(Chad Bowar)
Embrace Of Souls – The Battle Of The Dead (Rockshots)
On their third album The Battle Of The Dead, the Italian symphonic power metal band Embrace Of Souls use a slightly different vocal approach. Earlier albums featured numerous guest vocalists, but with The Battle Of The Dead Giacomo Rossi shoulders most of the load, with soprano Martina Mazzeo also handling some vocals.
Rossi is more than capable of handling the spotlight, singing with power and range, and is nicely contrasted by Mazzeo’s operatic style. The songs are bombastic and melodic, with some really catchy numbers like “Eversun” and “The Gathering.” The proceedings are slightly diluted with some less than impactful tracks, but the number of memorable compositions far exceeds the filler. The Battle Of The Dead is Embrace Of Souls’ most cohesive album to-date, and they are on an upward trajectory.
Rating: 3
(Chad Bowar)
Goddess – Ritual Of The Cloven Hoof (Majestic Mountain)
The Swedish stoner/doom band Goatess released three albums, the last one in 2019. After the departure of founding guitarist Niklas, the remaining members decided to change the group’s name to Goddess. Their debut is Ritual Of The Cloven Hoof.
With vocalist/guitarist Karl-Martin Buhre still in the fold, the band’s sound is similar to their predecessor. The riffs are thick and heavy and the vocals passionate. Goddess pay homage to the greats like Black Sabbath, but have more recent bands as influences as well, such as Electric Wizard. They are equally adept at deliberate doom on tracks like “Godless” as they are at brisker stoner numbers such as “Inquisition.” There’s a pretty even distribution of tempos, and more importantly, in addition to the quality riffage there are ample catchy melodies to burrow into the listeners’ brains.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Hellevate – Killicon Valley (Self)
Hellevate’s Killicon Valley is an hour of unfiltered thrash metal that makes no apologies about its intent. Stick with the album past its lumpy middle stretch and that’s where some of the best songs are found, like “Killicon Valley (Silicon Dust)” and “Curse God And Die.” “The Lost Pages” is an excellent instrumental reliant on melancholy bass guitar leads.
The last four to five songs save Killicon Valley from its tiring length, though the band tries their hardest to keep the interest going with a quickened instrumental opener in “D.T.C” and occasional screams/growls. For their first album in a decade, Hellevate doesn’t skimp on the material, even if not all of it is on the same level of quality.
Rating: 3
(Dan Marsicano)
Impure Wilhelmina – Le sanglot (Season Of Mist)
They have been around for 30 years, and the Swiss band Impure Wilhelmina‘s sound has evolved over the decades. Their melodic tendencies have increased without decreasing their progressive output. Their latest album Le sanglot has lyrics entirely in French.
There are metal moments along with accessible parts. Prog rock, post rock, gothic and new wave are some of the many styles Impure Wilhemina explore on this record. The vibe is melancholy, with Cure-esque vocals. One of the heavier songs is “Train mort,” which also utilizes harsh vocals. Variety abounds on Le sanglot, which has what Impure Wilhemina fans expect, but also pushes in new and interesting directions.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Kurnugia – Carmina Infernum (Godz Ov War)
Carmina Infernum from the mysterious Polish black/death metal band Kurnagia has an avant-garde flavor to it. The music is somewhat subdued and has a very narrow, stripped back feeling that it is a bit hypnotic. This is a very brash release but doesn’t have a lot of flair.
The musicianship is a huge high point to the release. The music is forward thinking and it presents a sort of black metal Mr. Bungle. Kurnugia have a very sparse sound, but manage to make Carmina Infernum somewhat interesting.
Rating: 2.5
(Adam McAuley)
Marmozets – Co.War.Dice (Nettwerk)
A lot has happened in the eight years since Marmozets last released an album. Frontwoman Becca Macintyre and guitarist Jack Bottomley had a baby and got married, and bassist Will Bottomley exited the band. They are on a new record label and are finally issuing their third album Co.War.Dice.
Their style is hard to pigeonhole, but easy to enjoy. Hard rock, post hardcore, punk and alt rock are all incorporated into their sound. The pace is mostly uptempo with catchy choruses, hooks and also an edge. Becca’s vocals are sometimes smooth, other times delivered with more attitude. Most of the songs are streamlined, in the 3-to-4 minute range. The exception is the 7-plus minute closer “Keep Going Darling,” which shifts to acoustic mode for the last section. Co.War.Dice is a welcome return, with Marmozets picking up right where they left off.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Skip Danko B-Movie Road Club – Trippin’ On A Chinese Market (Aalzorp)
Having spent the last thirty-five or so years making a name for himself in the German indie underground, Skip Danko channels his restless spirit into his new release Trippin’ On A Chinese Market.
Tracks like “Sixteen” and “Sunday Jam” showcase Danko’s ability to blend noise and stoner rock in a fashion that feels on par with his contemporaries. Bringing in talent like R.E.M’s Peter Buck to grace “Fear River Side” makes the album feel a little more special. Though the overall theme of the album may be no thoughts, just vibes, it feels like it could use just a little structure to make the album more coherent.
Rating: 3
(Dalton Husher)
