Overlord Industries - 2004 - Superunderground Vehicle

Here we have the third demo by the Swedish Metal outfit Overlord Industries. We are presented with five tracks with influences from all over the place. Very interesting, that. I find some small parts Black Metal here and there, but this is mainly Death Metal with Thrash and Metal parts.

The vocals consist of either growls or screamed growls, mostly the latter.

The soundquality is quite good, and they handle their instruments well. The music is mostly mid-paced and is extremely catchy, somehow. The guitars on the track "CFF" are just so extremely good!
This is without a doubt the best track on the demo, which is well worth buying just for this one track. A good demo from a promising band walking their own way. I am looking forward to hearing more from these guys.

Standout tracks are "Illness", "CFF" and "Depopulation".

Monday March 7 2005, by :Vragh:

Orcustus - 2002 - Demo

Orcustus is a Norwegian Black Metal band with a few rather known names in the ranks. Tormentor (Gorgoroth, Gaahlskagg), Dirge Rep (Gehenna, Enslaved) and Infernus (Gorgoroth) are members of this band, along with newcomer Taipan. This demo is really great, retro Black Metal at its finest.
The soundquality and vocals give a feeling of classic 1992-93 era Black Metal with the vocals sounding reminiscent to those of Emperor on their split with Enslaved and Marduk on their Those of the Unlight album.

The music is midpaced to fast with influences from the Emperor part of the aforementioned Emperor / Enslaved split and early Gorgoroth. The last track, "Lucifuge Damnation", could very well have been from Zyklon-B's Blood Must be Shed MCD. This is very interesting, and the coming fullength, to be released probably towards the end of 2004, certainly is something to look forward to.

Two of the three tracks from this demo, "World Dirtnap" and "Death Becomes You", have also been released on a 7" by Southern Lords in 2003. Unfortunately both of these releases are sold out. Both the demo and the 7" were limited to 1000 copies.

Standout track is "Death Becomes You".

Thursday May 20 2004, by :Vragh:

One Tail, One Head - 2008 - One Tail, One Head

Out of Norway comes this horde with their first demo containing four untitled tracks. Musically this reminds me a lot of the early half of the '90ies. Groovy Black Metal with a very classic sound and feel to it, somewhat reminding me of earlier Deathspell Omega at times.

The vocals mostly sound like a more desperate and guttural version of those by Fenriz on the first Dødheimsgard album and are moving with the music more than I expected. There are also some parts Mannevond of Koldbrann present.

The soundquality is typical demo sound, also reminiscent of the earlier years. This reminds me of the Emperor demo from -92, the music is a bit distant and though you do hear all the instruments, they are distant and some of the nuances of the music might get lost because of this, the first few times you listen to the tape. What can be heard most is the vocals, followed by the guitars and then the drums. This band is part of the Nidaros scene in Norway among such bands as Kaosritual, Selvhat,
Knokkelklang and Min Kniv. Grenjar and Vantro should also be mentioned. A very interesting scene for those of us who miss the raw sound of the earlier days.

Standout tracks are "I" and "IV".

Sunday August 23 2009, by :Vragh:

Ondskapt - 2004 - Draco Sit Mihi Dux

Out of the Swedish Black Metal scene comes Ondskapt with their first fullength album, following their debut mini lp Slave Under His Immortal Will. It took me a few listens to get into this album, but it is a very good one. Here are many an influence. The soundquality is a little dark and the sound is more bassoriented than is common in Black Metal.

The vocals remind me of a slightly less bizarre De Mysteriis era Attila Csihar, operatic and with a sound of desperation. On this album are both moments that could have been taken from De Mysteriis era Mayhem as well as from Angst era Shining. Mostly this is not an album that is built upon fast double bass drums, the tempo is more towards the midpaced with tracks around 6-10 minutes long.

The allover sound on the recording and the vocals creates a very dark mood. Some truly amazing riffing on this album. If you enjoy Mayhem, Attila Csihar and Shining you are going to enjoy this album. This is a well executed, very professional piece of Black Metal Art.

Standout tracks are "III" and "VI".

Thursday May 20 2004, by :Vragh:

Obscurus Advocam - 2004 - Fervour and Devotion

This French Black Metal horde has unleashed their demo upon the underground. Presented on this tape are five tracks, including intro and outro, of mostly mid-paced Black Metal featuring members of Glorior Belli.

The music reminds me of the mid '90ies, with a sound reminding me somewhat of Ondskapt and Shining, being slightly melodic and depressive Black Metal. The vocals are at times similar to those by Attila on De Mysteriis, but mostly they sound like a more guttural version of those by Akhenaten
of Judas Iscariot.

The soundquality is a bit murky, and the volume of the recording is lower than average, but I really like this demo. It just emanates an aura of darkness. There's this dark feeling in the music that many bands of today just don't have.

Standout tracks are "II" and "V".

Tuesday January 4 2005, by :Vragh:

Nightbringer - 2005 - Rex Ex Ordine Throni

Out of the United States comes this Black Metal act with a promo of their part of a split with Temple of Not, a band they share members with. This promo consists of 4 tracks of mid-paced to rather fast and slightly melodic, wellplayed Black Metal in the vein of Emperor and Carpathian Forest, with parts Watain and a less plastic sounding Limbonic Art at times, even. An interesting mix of Norwegian Black Metal with a slightly American sound.

The vocals remind me a bit of those in earlier Emperor, Ancient and Dark Funeral, but with a slight American sounding twist to them.

The production is a bit towards the thin, rather like the early days of the scene. The drums are what you hear most in the mix, with quite a De Mysteriis feel to the sound of the fills. There is also a keyboard present, which is more towards the front of the mix on the two last tracks. The use of the keyboard is the main similarity to Carpathian Forest. This has clear potential.

Standout tracks are "The Void" and "Mors Philosophorum".

Sunday January 14 2007, by :Vragh:

Niden Div. 187 - 1997 - Impergium

Out of Sweden comes this Black Metal project, featuring members from other well known acts in the scene (Dawn, Thy Primordial and A Canorous Quintet). Presented on this album are ten tracks of blasting Black Metal Art at a total running time of just above 26 minutes. The hatred on this disc can almost be compared to the feeling of extreme hatred which permeates all Ildjarn releases. There the similarities stop, however. Musically this reminds me slightly of early Immortal, due to the speed, and Antaeus, though they have a slight Death Metal vibe in their music as well. Some sort of groove that isn't quite typical for Black Metal. Some samples are used, but not in a conventional way.

The vocals are typical for Henke Forss, rather high pitched raspy shrieks, quite like his performance
on later Dawn albums. A mix of Abbath and early Varg Vikernes, perhaps would describe them best.

The soundquality is slightly muffled, however all instruments are heard in the mix. Main focus is

shared between the drums, vocals and guitars. My only complaint would be that this album, as with many albums from the later '90ies, has the volume set rather low, so you need to turn up the volume when you play this album. This is, however, one of my favourite Swedish Black Metal albums. Rereleased together with the bands first MCD in 2004. Well worth checking out!

Stand out tracks are "Genocide", "The Execution" and "Hate".

Saturday August 22 2009, by :Vragh: