All hell breaks loose – especially since DAMNATION saw Resurrection of Azarath released, a compilation and celebration of the good old DAMNATION times. There are no new tracks here, only a selection of past hymns, as well as some rare and previously unreleased songs. The sources vary from previous demos to full-lengths, including two bonus cover versions of KING DIAMOND’s Mansion in Darkness and MORBID ANGEL’s Bleed for the Devil.

Highlights of the album are without the shadow of a doubt Rebel Souls and Coronation. Resurrection of Azarath is thus an excellent means to revive glorious moments of the DAMNATION era, as well as grasp the very rare tracks of Promo 1998. Ogverall, I found the compilation CD rather attractive and musically worthwhile, were DAMNATION not one of the milestones of the Polish scene. Now it is off to a new album!

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The fact that this band is composed by young men (nowadays at the age of 20 or so) has more or less hindered them from having a wider recognition in the past. Most people seemed not to take their efforts seriously. However, after the release of the Cemeterial Gardens  demo in 1997, it became clear that the band were playing more than just standard, faithful-to-the-roots Death Metal. Decapitated’s nowadays almost consecrated status slowly gained its firm roots with the release of yet another demo (The Eye Of Horus) in 1998 and their debut album Winds of Creation through Earache‚Wicked World in 2000.

Nihility is the second opus created by this four-member act. I believe all the expectation around the album is more than justifiable. They benefited greatly from the fact that they attend a music school, and as a proof, you have flawless, technical Death Metal at your availability, from the guitars to the drums.

Some obvious comparisons to Cannibal Corpse and Morbid Angel must be established, but it is not at all some sort of copy or plagiarism. It is only a proof that their sources of inspiration are very good. Decapitated also have their very own sense of mature morbidness and there does not lack the hypnotic riffing, allied to a very heavy production.

In a total playing time of 35:07 minutes, their 8 tracks are a sample of genuinely well played technical, inventive and progressive Brutal Death Metal. Favourite tracks are Mother War, Nihility (Anti-Human Manifesto) and Spheres of Madness. In Nihility you can actually feel Armageddon is coming nearer, in pieces, accompanied by gradual threats of annihilation. In Spheres O Madness (a slower-tempo song) you just go berzerk with the intro. The other tracks are Perfect Dehumanisation (The Answer), Eternity Too Short, Names, Babylon’s Pride and Symmetry Of Zero.

The more I listen to the album, the more addicting it becomes. All in all, it is a very refreshing release as it comes to well-played Death Metal. The fact that the musicians attend music schools does not prevent the true feeling from being there as, alas!, so often happens with (virtuoso) musicians.

Amongst so many Death Metal bands that arose after Vader, Decapitated seem to be THE honourable successors to Poland’s (maybe even Europe’s) Death Metal throne. You should be on your knees, begging for an opportunity to see them live. Well I have and am certainly awaiting future concerts!

Official Site Decapitatedband.net | Myspace Decapitated

Note from the Editor: The band had a van accident while touring in russia and Witold “Vitek” Kieltyka the drummer of the band, and one of the best kick ass drummers i have ever listen has died, if you want to help his and other bandmates families you can do so by going here, thank you… you will be missed… now freakin enjoy his awesome work on Spheres of Madness

Decapitated – Spheres Of Madness

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Ahh back to some headbashing hehehe, Diskreet is kind of the new wave of death metal, it has a more hardcore/grindcore feel to it, and not so much a leaning technical ability, nevertheless they hail from Kansas USA, and that might mean something to be mad about muahhaha.

Infernal Rise starts pretty good with “Infernal Throne”, its kinda a slow burn blast beat kind of track, pretty good and straightforward, “Infinite Hold” comes next and starts with a guttural blast/slow rifts, then it gets into a more speed up but always with a play with the speed, slowing and speeding, always with prologued drummed blasting or small bursts of blasting, actually the drumming is what shines, its always changing the pattern, pretty nice track, it finishes much like it started, “The Bigger Complex” starts with a sound clip then goes into death blasting, it kinda works like the previous track with a bit more guitar work, but it still feels like its an all drumming thing… “Entrails” starts with the death blasting thing, stops and then picks up again almost all the way through… humm

“Faust” at least starts pretty differently with a more groove metal kind of thing, but damn if the drumming isn’t kinda carrying everyone on their backs, loads of variations of blasting, feels a bit like don caballero but with worse mix between the guitarists and the drummer, it even has those more breakneck kind of breakdowns, “The Nightmare” is a bonus track and it kinda shows, its a bit more straight death metal, but still a pretty solid track, again drums shine like hell, “Promising Demise” is the last track and also a bonus one, and again a bit different from the rest of the album, slower and maybe not even death, more like metalcore even with a cleaner chorus, not so bad, its good as a final track.

Diskreet… humm, well this didn’t WOWed me, and it does feel like its a work in progress, i really cant tell if they are really good, i do like some of the tracks, but it seems like a one trick band, well we will see how they fare with time, i did particularly liked the drumming and hell with this drumming maybe its just a matter of tweaking this and that and they have them selfs a kick ass band, so why not check it out (at least the mp3) hehehe

Official Site Myspace Diskreet (Myspace? hum?) Siegeofamida.net (Label Page)

Diskreet – Faust

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The band now known as D’EVIL LEECH PROJECT was born under the black mark of the year 1994. Back then, the moniker was DEVILEECH and the debut album (Leechtron, 1999) brought forth a band simultaneously aggressive (Death Metal vein) and slightly industrial (not only due o some of the musical passages, but also because the band has rejected the human drummer from an early stage, in favor of a sequencer).

Bleed your Mind is the long-awaited follow-up and is the end result of a thorough metamorphosis in the band, starting with the name. the songs are not nearly as industrial as one might at first expect – there are samples and passages that do confirm the band’s reputation for cybernetics, but the music itself has firm roots on classic Death Metal. They are also technically demanding, more often than not. Some of the riffs are highly inspired by CANNIBAL CORPSE (check out MOduS Op3r4nd1 or 30 Seconds Intercourse), but the range of influences is rather broad.

On a different note… from the very first live shows, the audience has responded positively, but the modern shows are particularly striking, for the visual support is intense and treads on cybernetic paths. I is an interactive union between sound and image to further illustrate the band’s concept.

The D’EVIL LEECH PROJECT is currently brought to you by Alfredo Cassis (throat, previously in local DM ac SANNEDRIN), Diogo Coelho (bass guitar), Nuno Carola (guitar) and Paulo Marçalo (guitar).

Official Sites Devileechproject.com | Ragingplanet.web.pt

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ACHERON is one of the oldest Satanic Death Metal bands in existence. Reverend Vincent Crowley is the frontman – and responsible for the uttering of many blasphemies throughout the ages and the band’s 15 years of existence. The aforementioned is also a member of the misanthropic band WOLFEN SOCIETY.

Decade Infernus is a best of double CD-set comprising the band’s first ten years, which started in 1988. Back then, Mr Crowley joined forces with Peter Gilmore, a classical composer and Magister of the Church of Satan. In the early years Anton Szandor Lavey invited Vincent Crowley to join the COS, which he did, regardless of the apparent contradiction between surname and religious/ ritualistic organization.

Decade Infernus features the band’s strongest songs – taken from a vast discography. Some of these are classics, others are perhaps not very representative of ACHERON’s real power. On the whole, the double CD set is perhaps better listened to separately, for the mighty anthems of doom may sound a little too monotonic at the 10th track or so. But other than that, this is a pretty good compilation of the band’s work – ideal for those that do not own the albums and might want to get to know the band. The songs are mostly mid-.tempo, there is some variation (some keyboards too). The best of is a good choice for newcomers, and a sound purchase for those who want to understand the cult, but I would not necessarily hold this as a compulsory album.

Sites Acheron666.com | Black-lotus-recs.com

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Seems I’m going from A to Z, well anyway here is the “new one” from the Swedish Blinded Colony, hmmm a bit of “Gothenburg” style of music, humm, first of all after a couple of listening although it sounds a bit like a more hardcorish form of Soilwork or In Flames (and lately i haven’t been that impressed with both this bands), well lets just sink our teeth on this one.

Starts of with “My Halo”, and its pretty much the growling/shouting kind of stuff, with some electronics accents and a clearish vocal chorus, kinda the formula is always there, its not that bad, but nothing remarkable, “Bedtime Prayers” is kinda a bit of the same, a bit more catchier… i guess, “Once Bitten Twice Shy” … hummm maybe its me but again pretty much the same, i guess the riffs and timing seem pretty similar, not much definition in the sound, “Need” is… well again a bit better, but it seems like its always getting the catchier stuff and repeating it to infinity.

“Revelation Now!” is … pretty weak track, skip skip, “21st Century Holocaust”… well again a bit of a mess, skip skip, “Aaron’s Sons” is again nothing to call home about, “In Here” … blahhhh, “Heart” finishes the album, and its the “quieter” track, every album seems to have one… the chick pleaser hehehe

I know i know, this kind of music tend to compare with the “big boys” and as such maybe a bit unfair, but if i played in the gender i would try and mix things up and give it an edge, well it kinda doesn’t matter the gender, you should always try and make it your own, also the album seems to die half way trough it or i maybe i just got bored, so i guess i can say that Blinded Colony are good enough but this one is only for real fans of this kind of music… I’ll probably move to more interesting stuff.

Official Site Blindedcolony.com

Blinded Colony – Once Bitten Twice Shy

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