Genres: Progressive Metal, Technical Death Metal
Label: Season of Mist

Metalgasm! Straight up, pure, unadulterated, and unfuckwithable eargasmic metal right here. I can’t stop listening to Traced in Air, an album I bought because I heard Cynic were pretty damn good and the tag on the album was Technical Death Metal. I thought I was buying an Origin- or Cryptopsy-like CD, but what came out was definitely not like either of those bands.
Instead, it reminded me right off the bat as Tool, but then the second listen brought in Deftones and Coheed and Cambria. And once I heard the Coheed-like elements, the Rush comparison was instant. And King Crimson. This is a wonderful, perfect album, a little on the short side (all of the best CDs are too damn short, aren’t they?) but still perfect.
It takes you on a mood swing ride, but unlike most death metal, it’s not all minor keys. Happy sounding major keys and beautiful melodies take you away on a cloud and drop you into a headbang session, then pick you back up again, just to smash your mind against the rocks of what you thought proggy tech-death could be.
If you don’t own this album, you are missing out on something so wonderful. Please, go to a store and pick this CD up.
10 out of 10.

Cynic on MySpace.

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Genre: Death Metal
Label: Deathgasm Records

Excisions of Exorcisms is killer. Fast, solo drenched, and brutal as hell, Diabolic are again rearing their ugly heads and showing the world what death metal is all about.
I don’t know what it is about 2010, but it seems to be the year that death metal is making its stand against shitty posers, and this album is another solid example of a straight up death metal album. It’s right up there with the new albums from Headhunter D.C., Cardiac Arrest, and Lifeless. It’s fucking GREAT.
If you’re a death metal fan, get this album. If you’re not, beware.
10 out of 10.

Diabolic on MySpace.

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Genre: Electronic Rock, Gothic Rock, New Wave
Label: Projekt

I am in so much love with this album, it’s retarded. It’s the perfect wet dream for new wave/goth fans, the one album everyone wishes would come out.
Picture Robert Smith singing for Depeche Mode with the occasional input from Siouxie Sioux and Sascha Konietzko. It’s that awesome.
For those that don’t know a thing about The Twilight Garden, the man behind the band is Todd Loomis, who some may remember from working with Bryan Erickson on the Lust for Blood and The Art of Falling Apart albums from Velvet Acid Christ. This album, however, is very much not Velvet Acid Christ. It is it’s own animal, a genre defining album that you should get your hands on. It’s perfect.
10 out of 10.

The Twilight Garden on MySpace.

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Genre: Avant-Garde, Progessive,  Black Metal
Label: Paragon Records

I’ve actually been sitting on The Great Silk Road for about a month now, wondering just how I’m going to translate my feelings about this album. I’ll start off by saying that this album fucking rules! It touches EVERY little thing about black metal that I love and avoids everything that I dislike about it. It should also be said that this epic, five track (and approximately fifty-three minute) piece of artsy black metal has done wonders for my curbing my craving for… artsy black metal…

When you first start down The Great Silk Road, you’ll notice that tradition is not part of the game. The sound of Middle Eastern instruments can be heard throughout your travels. Mid to fast paced black metal greets you as the road begins to twist and turn. About three minutes into second track, “Inner Voice” and you come face to face with some soul destroying blackened thrash type shit out of nowhere to rape your cows and slaughter your women! But relief comes during a particularly well paved portion of “Kara-Oy” (track number four) in the guise of a beautiful metal oasis. And finally, during “The Last Step”, you’ve made it. The end of The Great Silk Road is before you. I ended up going back to the beginning and starting this journey all over again. I suggest you do the same.

Overall: I know that I gush a lot about albums that pass through here and I say things like, “best metal album EVER!” or “essential metal album!” But this time, I mean it with every fiber of my being. Darkestrah’s The Great Silk Road is hands down the greatest black metal album that I have had the privilege of listening to. And that’s not just the weed talking! Sober or no, this album is perfect.

10/10

Darkestrah On MySpace

Also Posted On E-MetalSpace.

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Genre: Progressive Death Metal
Label: Independent

Dethrone the Sovereign sent me this EP forever ago, and it sat on my desk for a couple days, then moved into my CD player for a couple days more. I couldn’t get enough of this disc when I first heard it. It was something I had not heard before, a nice mix of death metal with tons of proggy elements and some black metal touches gracing the edges of it all.
These young Utah dudes are playing tons of shows lately too, getting their names out there, getting some
recognition, and because of that and this EP, hopefully you’ll see them on Deathless Reality Records in the very near future.
10 out of 10.

Dethrone the Sovereign on MySpace.

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