EP Review: Occult Blood – The Room in the Ground

Occult Blood - The Room in the GroundAugust 18th, 2023Blackened Punk / Black MetalIndependently ReleasedEugene, Oregon, USA I first happened upon Occult Blood when I was listening to some other band that falls within the purview of blackened punk and blackened heavy metal. It may have been Darkthrone. It may have been Devil Master. I …

EP Review: Divine Bloodline – Kings of the Night

Divine Bloodline - Kings of the NightMarch 20th, 2024Folk Metal / Melodic Death MetalIndependently ReleasedMontreal, Quebec, Canada Montreal seems to be a never-ending font of awesome bands that just keep getting churned up out of the underground to deliver badass riffery unto the masses. Divine Bloodline is the latest offering that I've been privy to …

EP Review: Clayman – Enter: Clayman!

"Open wide! Open wide! Open wide! Open wide!" Clayman - Enter: ClaymanMarch 29th, 2024Noise Rock / Experimental PunkGeomorph RecordsMontreal, Quebec, Canada Arisen from the fine-grained soil, Clayman has arrived to deliver unchained sonic terror to the masses from the depths of the Doom Room. This new trio featuring the rhythm bombast of Zilbatar, the electroshock …

EP Review: Paratomb – Nocturnal Spirit Rituals

Paratomb - Nocturnal Spirit RitualsMarch 1st, 2024Blackened Death MetalIndependently ReleasedCharlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada When I covered the first Paratomb EP earlier this year, Ways of the Forlorn, I found it to be a release full of great riffage and ideas but also perhaps underwhelming in a few ways, mixing a few more elements of …

EP Review: Mulch – Nothing Grows Out of Dried Flowers

Mulch - Nothing Grows Out of Dried FlowersFebruary 19th, 2024Hardcore Punk / Noise RockIndependently ReleasedMontreal, Quebec, Canada Montreal seemingly has no shortage of new hardcore punk bands these days, and Mulch are one of the latest to join the fray. Consisting of photographer extraordinaire Rose Cormier on vocals, William Trottier-Jackson of Typeface and Freezerburn on …

EP Review: Glowing Orb – Subterranean Prison

"I love my inner world." Glowing Orb - Subterranean PrisonNovember 10th, 2023Hardcore PunkIndependently ReleasedMontreal, Quebec, Canada If the above cover artwork done by Cain Cox is anything to go by, you've already got an idea of what to expect from this blisteringly brief EP from Montreal hardcore punks Glowing Orb. Clocking in at just around …

EP Review: Carnage – Free at Last

"No importance held, never will, wait forever, suffer still." Carnage - Free at LastJuly 23rd, 2023Hardcore / Beatdown / PowerviolenceIndependently ReleasedSt. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada As far as capital H "Hardcore" goes, I've never been the biggest fan of the genre. I've been a fan of NYHC bands like Sick of it All and …

EP Review: Knarl – Bad Luck

“I don’t give a fuck about what you have to say. It’s my fucking life. I live it my way.” Knarl – Bad LuckMay 5th, 2023Hardcore / PowerviolenceIndependently ReleasedSt. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada Knarl are one of the bands at the forefront of the post-pandemic hardcore explosion that occurred in Newfoundland between 2021 and …

EP Review: The Crevice – 11th Hour / Valley of Flies

The Crevice – 11th Hour / Valley of FliesMarch 1st, 2023Stoner Rock / Doom MetalBig Slaps RecordsSt. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada One of the most interesting releases that dropped in this year’s annual Record Production Month Challenge was this two track EP from Jacob Cherwick’s newly minted stoner / doom project The Crevice. Initially …

EP Review: Ghoul – Noxious Concoctions

Ghoul - Noxious ConcoctionsFebruary 2nd, 2024Death / Thrash MetalTankcrimesRichmond, California, USA While I've been a fan of Ghoul for many years I regret that I'm not as familiar with their five-album-long discography as I would like to be. Still, when I found out they were dropping a new EP in the early months of this …