“We have long found our sound”, says Mark Jansen, “but within that sound, there is lots of room for evolution. We always try to reinvent ourselves, to bring in refreshing elements.” I admire the clarity of vision that Mark (founder,…
View More Epica – Ωmega
Draconian’s journey to Under A Godless Veil has been a long one. Johan Ericson (guitarist, composer, producer) and Anders Jacobsson (vocals, lyricist) formed the group in 1994 when they were still teenagers and then spent the next nine years moulding…
View More Draconian – Under A Godless Veil
I went to the doctor in search of a panacea for my Covid-related live music withdrawals. While the doctor was unable to provide a cure, he did prescribe an intensive regimen of heavy guitar riffs and Hammond organ to treat…
View More Kylver – The Plague Tapes
Unleash The Archers didn’t make it easy on themselves with this record. Writing the second half of a continuing concept is always a challenge, especially when the first volume was a breakout success like 2017’s Apex. It’s a scenario that…
View More Unleash The Archers – Abyss
Utgard brings us to album #15 in Enslaved’s nearly 30 year career, a discography nearly unmatched in terms of consistency, both of purpose and execution. The duration of their career is an achievement unto itself, but the fact they’ve methodically…
View More Enslaved – Utgard
One of the more unique and rewarding releases of 2020, Tom Warrior’s long-gestating Requiem finally comes to fruition on this beautifully rendered live recording from Roadburn 2019. Thanks to the sponsorship of Walter Hoeijmakers (founder of the Roadburn festival) and…
View More Triptykon with the Metropole Orkest – Requiem (Live at Roadburn 2019)
What are the odds? Your new album, a concept work about the final days of a civilisation facing an impending doom, is released in the middle of a global pandemic that has shuttered the world. Omens feels apt for 2020.…
View More Elder – Omens
I think as reviewers we sometimes have the tendency to discount our initial gut reactions and instead go directly to dissection and study. Only a couple minutes into my first listen to advance single Hjärtat Vet Vad Handen Gör I…
View More Opeth – In Cauda Venenum
I’m learning to never underestimate Elder. In my review of their last studio album, the masterful Reflections Of A Floating World, I spent a fair amount of time detailing how quickly and impressively their music has developed over the past…
View More Elder – The Gold & Silver Sessions
Opeth continue their string of excellent live concert releases with Garden of the Titans: Opeth Live at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. This film/live album captures their performance from a special concert at the famed natural amphitheatre in Denver, Colorado that also…
View More Opeth – Garden of the Titans: Opeth Live at Red Rocks Amphitheatre