Genres: Black Metal, Death Metal
Label: Ibex Moon
Ah… Ibex Moon. Your death metal releases are like comfortable pants. You put them on, and instantly everything is better. Gravehill’s Rites of the Pentagram is no different; granted it’s not pure death to most ears, which is why I’m including black metal as a genre above. It does at times sound like black metal played death, but that is if you’re not familiar with really deep underground old death metal (think Darkthrone’s Soulside Journey for a sometimes similar sound).
This whole album is good, no filler tracks or anything, and after reading some interviews with vocalist Mike Abominator I understand why: he won’t compromise for anything. He reminds me as the kind of guy who would throw a mountain out of his way if he had to.
This is an old school American death metal album, sounding like it could have been recorded in about 1986 to ’89, and I recommend it for fans of Blasphemous, Darkthrone, Death, Carcass, Cardiac Arrest, Lifeless, and well damn near anything that Ibex Moon has put out.
My favorite tracks are “Decibel Ritual”, “Bloodsoaked”, and “The Luciferian Mark”.
8 out of 10.
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On July 10th at Belvedere’s in Pittsburgh, PA, the Campaign For Death Metal Purity 2010 Tour featuring HOD, Cardiac Arrest and Gravehill will join forces with death metal pioneers Incantation along with Western Pennsylvania’s low-end sewage death metal masters Funerus and Pittsburgh’s premier death metal juggernauts Abysme under the banner of the Ibex Moon Records Fest. Ibex Moon Records owner and Incantation frontman, John McEntee comments on the event:
“We are very proud to bring this killer death metal event to Western Pennsylvania. There are a lot of great bands from this area along with a huge fan base. This will be the first time Incantation has played Pittsburgh in at least two years. For Funerus it’s been even longer, something like five years or more. This show will also feature performances by some of the best live death metal bands to emerge on the scene in quite some time. Gravehll, HOD, & Cardiac Arrest have all proven themselves to be a force to be reckoned with. We hope with the success of this kick ass bill, we can bring more great death metal shows to the ‘Burgh. We look forward to a kick ass gig and hanging out with all our local friends.”
The first 25 people paid through the door will receive a free Fest T-shirt. Ibex Moon Records will be giving away additional prizes throughout the fest.
CAMPAIGN FOR DEATH METAL PURITY 2010 TOUR DATES
July 2nd @ Plan B – Portland, OR*
July 3rd @ The Parkside – San Fransisco, CA*
July 4th @ The Blvd – Los Angeles, CA*
July 5th @ The Drunken Lass – Prescott, AZ
July 7th @ Beerland – Austin, TX
July 8th @ The Riot Room – Kansas City, MO
July 9th @ Nightcap – Chicago, IL
July 10th @ Belvedere’s Lounge – Pittsburgh, PA**
July 11th @ Jimmy’s Place – Allentown, PA
July 12th @ Dingbatz – Clifton, NJ
July 13th @ Fontana’s – New York, NY
July 14th @ Melody Inn – Indianapolis, IN
July 15th @ TBA – Memphis, TN
July 16th @ Downtown Music – Little Rock, AR
July 17th @ Walters – Houston, TX
July 18th @ Ten Eleven – San Antonio, TX
* – w/ Fatalist
** w/ Incantation, Funerus and Abysme
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California brutalists Gravehill recently took a break from working on their highly anticipated Ibex Moon Records debut to head down south to Texas for a string of shows with label mates, Hod. Safely home from the carnage and mayhem that ensued, vocalist Mike Abominator offered this summary of the mini-tour.
“The Texas shows couldn’t have been better. Hod kicked total ass and made us stay on top of our game! One of the best live bands we have seen and some of the best guys around in metal….PERIOD! It was an honor sharing the stage with them and playing our death metal for all those Texas maniacs! We met so many killer and diehard people in Texas. And I have fond memories of all three shows, but the San Antonio show was unforgettable due to the response of the crowd, the fights, equipment falling and going out, beer and blood flying, the fights, the mayhem, THE FIGHTS, ARGHHHHHH! What a show! Thank you to John/Ibex Moon and Beer Reebs/Hod for setting it all up! TEXAS! WE WILL BE BACK!”
Gravehill will also be among the many Ibex Moon acts contributing a song to the soundtrack to the upcoming indie horror flick, Afterparty Massacre. While said track might not be what Gravehill fans might expect from the band, Abominator guarantees brutality.
“We entered TRENCH STUDIOS for a weekend to do the exclusive track for the Afterparty Massacre movie soundtrack which Ibex Moon is putting out. We recorded the AC/DC song “If You Want Blood (You Got It)” for the release. It was Gravehill-ized so to speak, ha ha, but it came out GREAT. We even brought in our friends Shane from Phobia and Nick from Crepitus to scream and growl along with me on the infamous chorus! In the end, the song title, attitude of AC/DC and Bon Scott and even the overall performance of the song fit Gravehill PERFECTLY! Since we are the AC/DC of death metal! hahahaha”
In regards to the forthcoming album, the front man issued this update from the band’s own Hellheim Studios.
“Now we enter our studio/dungeon HELLHEIM STUDIOS to get the songs set for Pravus Tyrannis our 2nd album, and debut for Ibex Moon. Once we get the songs set, we will then enter TRENCH STUDIOS with Engineer John Haddad (who has worked with Phobia, Hirax, Abysmal Dawn, Final Conflict, Deathevokation) to record the eight songs of devastating and relentless death metal that this album will unleash upon the earth!”
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As expected, the mini-tour featuring Ibex Moon Records’ HOD and GRAVEHILL was a whirlwind of brutality that left the state of Texas in shambles. Over the course of three shows the Ibex Moon labelmates set a new standard for live intensity as each band delivered some of the best extreme metal in the underground today. HOD guitarist Carl “Lord Necron” Snyder issued this summary of the slaughter:
“The Texas onslaught with GRAVEHILL has been merciless. P.A. Systems crashing to ground. Women beating women. Men beating men. Holy hell it’s been brutal! GRAVEHILL’s death metal assault has to be witnessed live to understand the brutality. HOD has unleashed some new songs on this tour including ‘Under Tyranny’s Hammer’ and ‘Walking Wounded’. The crowd response has been killer for the new material. We hope to see all you maniacs out on the road soon.”
HOD’s Serpent was released last year on Ibex Moon Records, an album that Zero Tolerance called a “venomous explosion of black, death, and thrash metal fury” and Terrorizer called “non-commercialised, uncompromising and slightly unhinged death metal.”
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Vocalist Mike Abominator of recent IBEX MOON RECORDS signees, GRAVEHILL is now a featured columnist for the newly revamped MetalManiacs.com. Known for his gore-filled lyrics and all around ‘metal-as-fuck’ presence, Mike now has an outlet to philosophize on the metal scene in general. As a regular contributor to the site, Mike’s blog will feature updates on all things GRAVEHILL, thoughts on metal culture and new artist findings worth mentioning. The first installment of the appropriately titled, Welcome To Hell can be found here.
Read it, love it, live it and stay tuned for more.
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