Hierophant Nox

GRAVE DIGGER: DIARY OF A HANGMAN Napalm Records Grave Digger, the German heavy metal institution, are a rare beast, in that they continue to find real inspiration in subjects one would have thought they’d have exhausted after almost thirty years of penning pounding, fist-to-the-sky anthems. Their latest full-length, “Ballads of a Hangman”, which marks their [...]

NEFASTUS DIES : INTERLUDE Candlelight/SOAR When it came to my attention that Montreal black-metal machine Nefastus Dies had released a ‘between albums’ taster for their fans, I couldn’t wait to hear it; this modern, intelligent and mind-meltingly belligerent band easily lodged themselves amongst my favourites of last year with their debut “Urban Cancer”, which was [...]

STUKA SQUADRON : WE DRINK BLOOD Unsigned Stuka Squadron come highly recommended by a number of trusted sources, not least Hierophant regulars Asomvel, with whom they share a genuine and deep-rooted enthusiasm for what they term ‘unmitigated, anti-PC, apocalyptic hero metal’. As an introduction, the Squadron, so their press release informs me, are a band [...]

GRAVDAL : SADIST Unexploded Records Gravdal’s debut full-length sidled up to the scene wielding a concealed blade and grinning with a kind of demented anticipation six months ago, so I’m surprised not to have found more people discussing “Sadist”. Its malicious aura boasts a classic Norwegian vintage, with insistent, muscular riff patterns bringing the likes [...]

ISOLE : SILENT RUINS Napalm Records Swedish monumental doomsters Isole are back with their fourth full-length, a textured, ever-evolving journey through the dusty, barren landscape of apocalypse. Throughout their five year career, this four piece have developed a tendency to pleasantly surprise listeners misled by their apparently low profile, easily winning them over as fans [...]

CRIMFALL : AS THE PATH UNFOLDS… Napalm Records That this is Finnish symphonic-power-folk metal act Crimfall’s debut album is amazing; the quality, vision and immense ambition of this release belie the band’s relatively short time together, and sets them off on a globally impressive first footing. “As the Path Unfolds…” mixes ingredients from symphonic black [...]

MIND ODYSSEY : TIME TO CHANGE IT Napalm Records Although the rest of the world may have a tendency towards cynicism with regards to German traditional and melodic metal, there’s no denying that only a couple of other countries boast such a high incidence per capita population of genuine metal powerhouses. Victor Smolski, guitarist with [...]

VREID : MILORG Indie Recordings “Milorg” marks Vreid’s fourth full-length in five years, but this Norwegian epic black metal act have never been ones to re-tread old ground, and once again they have delved into their special pool of inspiration and emerged bearing some magical, golden gifts. Building on the energy and depth of predecessor [...]

DECRETO K: LA TOMBA RECLAMA LA TUA CARNA Unsigned Decreto K’s Horta has a number of ways in which to describe his hateful and painful sound, mainly focusing on its negativity, madness and purposeful lo-fidelity. Creating black metal with an intentionally nasty production can be a hit or miss activity, as it doesn’t take much [...]

FEMME METAL RECORDS Hometown: London, UK Website: www.femmemetalrecords.com Myspace: www.myspace.com/femmemetalrecordsuk Specialism: Female-fronted rock and metal acts of all varieties Releases: Currently working to release both forthcoming and past albums from all of their artists. A number of compilations have also been created. There has been a new and budding label chipping away at our consciousness [...]