Helsefyr - 2004 - The Land Of No Return

Swedish Black Metal act Helsefyr have just released a cassette containing five tracks, including two covers, "Outbreak of Evil" by Sodom and Mayhem's "Deathcrush". The soundquality on this tape is quite good, perhaps the drums are a bit in the back of the mix, but otherwise I have nothing to complain about.

The music is slow to mid-paced repetitive Black Metal in the vein of Dark Funeral and Von with some parts Darkthrone added. The vocals remind me mostly of Von and Long Voyage Back and somewhat of those on Darkthrone's A Blaze in the Northern Sky.

Standout tracks are "The Pestilence" and "The Land of No Return".

Friday October 29 2004, by :Vragh:

Helsefyr - 2004 - Deadly Black I Am

This Swedish Black Metal horde returns with their second assault this year. Though their last demo was released just a few months ago, the material on it was recorded back in the summer of 2003, but here we have entirely new material.

Musically this reminds me a bit more of latter days Darkthrone than their previous effort, with vocals sounding like a mix of Nocturno Culto's and those in Von. The demo contains five tracks, including an intro, an outro and a cover of Bathory's "The Return of the Darkness and Evil".

The soundquality has been improved a bit since the last time, giving this demo a somewhat more unified feel. I would have liked there to be one or two more tracks of their own material, but this is still well worth checking out.

Standout track is "A Frozen Soul".

Tuesday January 4 2005, by :Vragh:

Goatlord Corp. - 2003 - Early Beginnings of War

The first release by French Black Metal legion Goatlord Corp. is indeed a work of high quality. Four tracks of mid-paced to fast Black Metal with a groove not too common in this kind of music.
Musically this has some Thrash and Metal influences, while still sounding very much french like Black Metal. They have that specialsound you get from those parts. Reminds me a bit of Antaeus, but
with a fuller sound, similar to their De Principii Evangelicum album. Some Dark Funeral also finds its way into their music.

The soundquality is clear, and the music has been given a dark and murky atmosphere. The vocals are somewhat reminiscent of those of Dark Funeral and Von, sounding very aggressive, almost as if the
vocalist were possessed. Absolutely a band to keep your eyes on. Limited to 999 copies. Don't miss out!

Standout tracks are "Tormentor 666" and "In the Name of the Black Lord".

Wednesday December 29 2004, by :Vragh:

Domini Inferi - 2004 - In Nomine Domini Inferi

This is the first demo by this Dutch one man Black Metal outfit dating back to 2001, now rereleased by Satanic Propaganda Records on tape. Presented on this demo are nine tracks, including an instrumental intro, an outro and a newly recorded instrumental/ambient bonus track. The music is mostly midpaced Black Metal with a ritualistic feel to it, very much in the vein of Von.

As with Von, the songstructures are built on repetition of the same riffs, here accompanied by a drum machine and the vocals here are sounding similar to those by Goat in Von as well. The soundquality on this tape is a bit muffled, but not too bad.

Standout tracks are "Cult of Death" and "Blood Harvest". A cover of Von's "Veinen" is also presented here.

Monday August 23 2004, by :Vragh:

Angelgoat - 2005 - Demo

Out of Serbia comes this Black Metal act with their first demo. Three tracks are presented here, and the music is mid-paced to fast. Somewhat towards Von and Goatlord Corp., with a slight Death Metal influence. The drums are rather simplistic, mostly, sounding much like those in Von.

The vocals also remind me somewhat of those in Goatlord Corp., although they are a bit more twisted here. They also remind me of those by MkM of Antaeus, but perhaps being a bit more towards the highpitched spectrum.

The soundquality is somewhat muddled and raw, but you can hear the vocals clearly, and the other instruments can be heard as well. The drums are what comes through most in the mix, with the really aggressive guitar sound being a nice surprise.

Standout tracks are "Armageddemonia" and "The Final Funeral". The last track seems to have been recorded at another time than the two first ones, having a bit better soundquality.

Saturday October 21 by :Vragh:

....Aaaarrghh.... - 2004 - Ruhlar Fisildiyor

Here we have the second demo by this Turkish Black Metal horde, consisting of eight tracks. The band has progressed a bit in the five years since their last demo, I must say. The traces of Beherit are mostly gone, the music is faster and reminds me of Von and Dark Funeral, with some Death Metal in it.

The vocals remind me of Nocturno Culto of Darkthrone and Graav of Armagedda, around Panzerfaust and The Final War Approaching respectively, but they are more in the back of the mix here, than on their previous effort.

The soundquality has been improved since the previous release, which is both good and bad. Personally, I prefer the murkier sound of their first demo, but that's because I thought that gave their music an extra edge. The drums are more towards the front of the mix on this release, which the vocals suffer a bit from.

Standout tracks are "Kara Doda", "Sinsi Karanlyk" and "Ebedi Yalnyzlyk".

Saturday October 21 2006, by :Vragh: