This week’s Heavy Music HQ reviews include releases from 1349, 5Rand, Aktor, Blut Aus Nord, Equilibrium, Malefic Throne, Pale Horse Ritual, Perdition Temple, PitchBlack, Struck A Nerve, Thermality and Triskelyon.
The ratings are on a 5-star scale.
1349 – Winter Mass (Season Of Mist)
1349‘s Winter Mass showcases the classic and reliable black metal of a band with more than two decades of experience. While 1349 usually stick to a formulaic approach, it works rather well here, as most of the tracks are solid parts of a long-standing catalogue.
Not to mention that the organic, live sound adds a certain sense of nostalgia and a dynamic range that this type of black metal usually lacks. Consistency is the key; the performances are as strong as the material. Even though the quiet crowd might make you forget this is a live album at times, you still feel like you’re right there next to the band, and that’s always a plus in my book.
Rating: 3.5
(Carlos Tirado)
5Rand – Ordhalia (Art Gates)
This year has been the year for female led bands and Italian black metal bringers 5Rand and their latest release Ordhalia provides more evidence to this claim. Coming out just six years after their previous release Dark Mother, this latest release aims to elevate their current style to the next level.
Much like their previous works, vocalist Julia Elenoir’s vocal talent of bouncing back and forth from heavy growls to clean harmonies adds that extra spice when paired with guitarist Pierluigi Carocci’s speedy licks tracks like “Tubrid” and the rest of this album all the more powerful. Fear Factory’s Milo Silvestro lends his vocal prowess for “The Nihilist” in a collaboration that would be nice to see more of in the future. While the instrumentation is nothing extra special, it does the job of your average black metal performance and is still enjoyable in the end.
Rating: 3.5
(Dalton Husher)
Aktor – Professori (Season Two) (High Roller)
Aktor are one of the many projects of Chris “Professor” Black (Dawnbringer, High Spirits, Superchrist, Black Sites). The trio also includes guitarist Jussi Lehtisalo (Circle, Steel Mammoth) and drummer Tomi Leppanen (Pharoah Overlord, Circle). Professori (Season Two) is the group’s third album.
While there are the hooks and melodies you’d expect, it delves into the progressive and experimental as well. Synths mixed with guitars give the album a rock edged new wave vibe with influences of bands such as Oingo Boingo and Talking Heads. The album’s concept is a “Nordic noir” detective show, with each song an episode of the show. Professori (Season Two) is an interesting combination of retro and avant-garde with a lot of very catchy songs.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Blut Aus Nord – Ethereal Horizons (Debemur Morti)
Blut Aus Nord’s Ethereal Horizons blends the raw mysticism with with psychedelic sweeps. It’s a dense and atmospheric experience built on long, gradually mutating riffs and a persistent cosmic tone. The band’s sense of mystery remains central, shaping a sound that feels expansive yet deliberate and giving newcomers a way into their outer-world aesthetic without diving straight into the most abrasive corners of the catalog.
Some tracks can feel overly stretched, especially toward the end, and there’s a sense that the band is playing things a bit safer than usual, though this restraint still outshines most releases in the genre. The long-form structures, shifting dynamics, and immersive tone make Ethereal Horizons both accessible and strange, a balance that works as an inviting first step for new listeners and a polished, contemplative detour for long-time fans.
Rating: 3.5
(Carlos Tirado)
Equilibrium – Equinox (Nuclear Blast)
Six years after Renegades, the German band Equilibrium are issuing a new album Equinox, which features new vocalist Fabian Getto (Cauterized). The band produced the album themselves, and brought aboard guest musicians including members of Heidevolk and violinist Shir-Ran Yinon (ex-Eluveitie).
Equilibrium use a variety of styles, from symphonic metal to electronica to melodic death to folk to metalcore. Tracks like “Awakening” embrace most or all of those styles, while songs such as “Bloodwood” bring melody to the forefront and numbers like “I’ll Be Thunder” are heavy on electronic elements. Getto is a positive addition to the band, his potent harsh vocals fitting into whatever style the song requires. The term equinox emphasizes balance, and Equinox expertly blends and melds numerous styles.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Malefic Throne – The Conquering Darkness (Agonia)
There’s no interlude, no intro, no easing into the proceedings on Malefic Throne‘s The Conquering Darkness. The Florida death metal band wastes no time introducing their crushing style on their full-length debut. The trio has an impressive lineup of vocalist/bassist Steve Tucker (Morbid Angel), guitarist Gene Palubicki (Angelcorpse, Perdition Temple) and drummer John Longstreth (Hate Eternal, Origin).
Their brand of death metal in intense and aggressive, played mostly at a blistering pace but never neglecting the groove. Longstreth’s performance is especially impressive, with creative fills and keeping the song on the rails when the BPMs go into the red. Malefic Throne compose songs mostly in the 5-to-7-minute range that gives them plenty of time to explore various paths. The Conquering Darkness concludes with the 8-minute opus “Forged Of Stone” that’s more deliberate but no less crushing. Malefic Throne, as you’d expect from their resume, hit the ground running with a potent debut.
Rating: 4
(Chad Bowar)
Pale Horse Ritual – Diabolic Formation (Black Throne)
Terror in Pale Horse Ritual’s Diabolic Formation comes from the soul-destroying heaviness their music stays committed to. This is evident right from opening instrumental “Deflowered,” a six-minute torturous descent into the world of witches and Satanic rituals. Pale Horse Ritual set off an immediate signal of the murky mysticism within Diabolic Formation.
“Save You” is a grasp out of the pit, an acoustic ballad in the middle of the album that offers a glimmer of light that’s as quickly snuffed out as it is lit. The song is surrounded by fuzzy stoner/doom metal on both sides. The use of organ on “Wickedness” and “A Beautiful End” accentuates the creepy aura Pale Horse Ritual achieve. The fact they can fit a few catchy choruses in points to the flexibility of their songwriting.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Marsicano)
Perdition Temple – Malign Apotheosis (Hells Headbangers)
Evil, diabolical, and sinister; hailing from Tampa, Florida, Perdition Temple have been a key force in the extreme metal underground for nearly fifteen years. The band is a direct continuation of the spirit and style of the legendary Angelcorpse. After that group dissolved in 2007, guitarist and mastermind Gene Palubicki resurrected the same ruthless formula under a new name. With their fifth album, Malign Apotheosis, Perdition Temple once again return to that same infernal well; equally evil, equally abrasive.
Although Malign Apotheosis could have benefited from more refined production and mastering to better showcase its true essence, the record still assaults the listener with relentless ferocity. It places one foot firmly in old-school territory while stepping forward into the more modern frontiers of black/death metal. The result is a respectable work; one that keeps its audience excited and satisfied with its familiar savagery, even if it doesn’t necessarily push the band into new territory.
Rating: 3.5
(Arash Khosronejad)
PitchBlack – Walking On Burning Ground (Self)
Walking On Burning Ground, the latest release from the Danish band PitchBlack, is a raucous and highly aggressive melodic death metal album. It is an expression of aggression and this turns out to be a very abrasive work. The music is more rocking in nature than melodic and this brings the quality of the work down somewhat. There is as much in common with groove-era Sepultura as there is with Dark Tranquiliity, and this shows through in the sound if the album.
The musicianship is quite strong with a barrage of guitars atop pounding drums, though things are very straightforward. The incendiary nature of the songs likens them more to thrash then melodic death metal. The album’s impact is somewhat reduced because of the lack of the melodic in melodic death metal.
Rating: 3
(Adam McAuley)
Struck A Nerve – Struck A Nerve (Listenable)
The lineup for UK thrashers Struck A Nerve includes three former or current members of Shrapnel, including vocalist Aarran Tucker. Their self-titled debut is reminiscent of Shrapnel’s early days and also the glory days of thrash.
Blazing fast riffs drive the album, but there are changes of pace. That includes the title track, which briefly backs down from its blistering tempo for an interesting interlude. Struck A Nerve’s influences include both Bay Area thrashers like Slayer and European titans like Kreator with a little metallic hardcore in the mix. Struck A Nerve doesn’t bring anything new to the table, but their varied approach avoids monotony and is a fun listen.
Rating: 3
(Chad Bowar)
Thermality – Concept 42 (Black Lodge)
The streak of Thermality releasing an album a year continues unimpeded with their third album, Concept 42. This Swedish melodic death metal group is refining their sound with each passing year, chronicling their advances this time with the assistance of well-renowned producer Fredrik Nordström. Most of these band members are barely out of high school, yet their music education comes from repeated listens of the likes of 90’s-era In Flames and Dark Tranquillity.
Though the use of “concept” in the album title may imply some sort of overarching story, that doesn’t seem to be the case for Concept 42. These 12 songs are firmly planted in melodic death metal, with some extra emphasis on singing from vocalist Ludvig Sommar on “Inception” and “Tomorrow.” At almost 50 minutes, there could’ve been pruning of a few songs; however, Thermality’s growing development is encouraging to hear.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Marsicano)
Triskelyon – Maelstrom Of Chaos (Moribund)
On the heels of last year’s Shattered Elysium, Canadian thrashers Triskelyon waste no time in composing their fourth full-length, Maelstrom Of Chaos.
It’s an apt title, as the band quickly shift from edgy thrash to melodic metal, throwing in everything from death to psych to power metal. There are plenty of guests on the album, including Liv Sin’s Liv Jagrell on the ominous “Blood Drowned Prophecy.” Triskelyon continue their tradition of ending albums with a cover, this time putting a metal spin on the ’80s pop hit “Major Tom.” Maelstrom Of Chaos has plenty of variety with all the guests, but manages to stay cohesive with a collection of well-written tracks.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
