Thursday, December 22, 2011

My top 5 albums of 2011!

Well the end of the year is pretty much here and while I have been busy lately I have just got to get at the very least a top 5 out. To me this was an all around good year in metal, there were some bands who I expected to release good albums that failed to please, and some underground bands who surprised me. So in no particular order:

Abysmal Dawn - Leveling the Plane of Existence

Borderline technical death metal with a nice groove to it. I still can quit listening to In Service Of Time.

Obscura - Omnivium

I was so looking forward to these guys' album this year and they didn't disappoint at all. While they borrow heavily from Death, Gorguts and a few other progressive/technical death metal bands they also have a sound that is Obscura that no one else plays.

Exhumed - All Guts, No Glory

I never gave these fellas much thought but AGNG was a happy surprise this year. Catchy grinding death metal at its best.

Wormrot - Noise

This very short EP is like an extension of their epic album Dirge released earlier this year. Wormrot are grindcore all stars in my book.

Immolation - Providence

Scion A/V proved they are actually interested in releasing good extreme music and this (and the Wormrot EP) is all the proof you need. Crushing catchy death metal with a nice heavy production, just what the doctor ordered!

Not too bad of a year!

Once the holidays are over I will probably start posting more often once more.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Review: Wormrot - Noise

Band: Wormrot
Album: Noise
Year: 2011
Country: Singapore
Genre: Grindcore

Not only did the Singaporean grind band Wormrot release the epic album Dirge this year, but they have graced us with the excellent EP Noise released for free by Scion A/V. With 5 tracks coming in at just over 5 minutes, if you have listened to Dirge you know you are in for some blazing fast grindcore in the vein of Early Napalm Death.

This is some really great grind. The vocals range from an extremely high pitched yell to something resembling a death growl. The lyrics are spat out at times lightning quick and you know this would shock anyone who is not prepared. I heavily enjoy the style of vocals presented by the band. Don't get me wrong, this isn't anything different than what we have heard before. But for me the harshness of what these guys let lose from their throats just never gets old.

Each song is close to a minute long give or take 10-15 seconds. Loathsome Delusions starts it off with a sharp noise before blasting into absolute mayhem. In most songs here there are crazy frenzied sections of blasting and insanely quick riffing which will usually move into a slower more punkish sounding segment. Interestingly enough Perpetual Extinction actually has a brief harmonized guitar section that comes out of no where but sounds awesome.

Wormrot continue to impress the extreme metal world with this EP. Even as short as it is it lives up to the praise they have been receiving lately. Its got the blast beats, chaotic riffs, throat shredding vocals, and plain good song writing that makes a band (in this sub-genre) truly great. If you are looking for a quick grind fix, look no further than Wormrot's Noise.

Score: 9.5/10
Standout Tracks: Loathsome Delusions, False Assumptions, Outburst of Annoyance, Breed to Breed, Perpetual Extinction