UMUR "The Highest Level" is the seventh full-length studio album by Japanese, Tokyo based death metal act Defiled. The album was released through Season of Mist in April 2023. It´s the successor to "Infinite Regress" from January 2020 and it features the exact same quartet lineup who recorded the predeceding album. Defiled are by now one of the most prolific and dare I say legendary death metal acts from Japan, and they´ve pushed the boundaries of the genre more than once.

Stylistically the material on "The Highest Level" is technical and quite brutal death metal. Suffocation is not the worst reference, but Defiled have always had...and still have their own take on the genre. They play an interesting combination of almost hardcore punked and simple death metal and quite brutal and technical death metal, occasionally spiced up with some Voivod influenced dissonance. One of their greatest strengths is the pairing of the savage, raw, and primitive, and the more sophisticated and complex technical parts of the compositions. I struggle to remember any other death metal artists who sound like Defiled...and then again "The Highest Level" is actually their most "regular" sounding release yet, and I was initially a little disappointed that they sounded this normal. But when you dig a little deeper, "The Highest Level" still features quite a few unconventional and challenging moments, so Defiled haven´t completely forgotten what makes them stand out.

After releasing a few albums which have featured what I would deem near experimental sound production values, Defiled have now opted for a more (again) normal/standard for the genre type sound production. To some ears that´s probably a relief and an opportunity to give Defiled a chance again, if your ears weren´t able to appreciate the production oddness of the last couple of releases, but to my ears it´s a bit of a shame, as all the weirdness in regards to both the actual music, the performances, and the odd sounding production jobs of the last couple of albums, were the elements which made Defiled stand out on the death metal scene. So while "The Highest Level" is arguably another high quality death metal release from Defiled, it´s unfortunately their least interesting release in years...please bring back the weirdness. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

Warthur The Old Ways Remain! And it's good to know that, because for a while there it looked like Blood Ceremony had fallen off of the radar; after consistently putting out an album every 2-3 years, the long quiet from this doom-tinged heavy psych group was beginning to feel ominous. No need to worry: Alia O'Brien, Sean Kennedy, and the reliable rhythm section of Gadke and Carrillo are back. If Blood Ceremony have dialled back the quantity of releases lately, at least they are making sure the quality is top notch, with this occult rock tour de force as usual combining a solid heavy psych underpinning with O'Brien's distinctive presence on vocals, flute, and organ, delivering a defiant folk horror manifesto. Unless you are one of those for whom Blood Ceremony lost their charm when they dialled back the doom metal side of their sound in order to amp up the psych, there's plenty to love here for anyone who's already familiar, and if you're not it's a perfect statement of what thry are all about.

UMUR "The Age Of The Offended" is the fifth full-length studio album by Norwegian death metal act Cadaver (the sixth if you count the 2001 Cadaver Inc album as part of the band´s discography). The album was released through Nuclear Blast in July 2023. It´s the successor to "Edder & Bile" from November 2020, which was a comeback album for Cadaver after a 16 year long recording break. Band founder Neddo (guitars, bass, vocals) enlisted prolific drummer Dirk Verbeuren (Megadeth, Aborted, Scarve, Soilwork...etc.) and created a duo lineup and it´s the same duo lineup who has recorded "The Age Of The Offended".

After a short intro ("Sycophants Swing") the first "regular" track "Postapocalyptic Grinding" may have you believe that "The Age Of The Offended" is just a continuation of "Edder & Bile" as it´s similar in style to the sharp, aggressive, and fast-paced death metal of the preceding album, but the further you get into the album, you´ll come to realise that Cadaver have done what they always do...create a unique album which somehow still ends up sounding unmistakably like them. It´s actually mostly the production values which are somewhat similar between the two albums and of course the core style, but Cadaver make sure to challenge both themselves and their audience several times during the album´s playing time. So prepare to have a few curve balls thrown your way.

While it´s contempoary Carcass which I´m predominantly reminded of Cadaver are still a different kind of beast and they successfully add both hardcore punk, traces of industrial metal, thrash metal, and traditional heavy metal elements to their death metal sound. Sometimes Neddo sings in a blackened snarling vocal style and sometimes he uses a more rough and hoarse vocal style.

Upon conclusion "The Age Of The Offended" is another high quality release from Cadaver, and I´m extremely content that "Edder & Bile" wasn´t just a one-off comeback album. Hopefully Cadaver have even further album releases in them. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "The Shadow Inside" is the sixth full-length studio album by US, California based thrash metal act Sadus. The album was released through Nuclear Blast in November 2023. It´s the successor to "Out for Blood" from 2006 and there´s been a significant lineup change since the predecessor as bassist and founding member Steve DiGiorgio opted not to reunite with drummer Jon Allen and lead vocalist/guitarist Darren Travis for the recording of "The Shadow Inside", and as a consequence the latter has recorded the bass parts on the album.

Sadus were a pretty prolific act on the brutal and technical thrash metal scene of the late 80s/early 90s but since they released "Elements of Anger" in 1997 only two studio albums (including this one) have come out of their camp and it´s hard not to think of them as a hobby project these days. Even DiGiorgio who always fought hard for the survival of the band has now jumped ship (probably as a consequence of his commitments to his day job in Testament). Hobby projects don´t have to be sloppy projects though, and although Sadus haven´t exactly toured the world lately or made much of a fuzz about themselves, they still have a legacy and a fanbase who are excited that a new album has arrived.

Stylistically this is the core aggressive thrash metal sound of Sadus, but there are a few changes which need to be mentioned. First of all it´s of course noticeable that DiGiorgio isn´t performing on "The Shadow Inside". His unique and dominant bass playing has always been a key element of Sadus sound, and it´s a bit odd to hear a Sadus album without it. Travis has opted for a more normal way of playing bass and while there´s nothing wrong with the bass parts, they aren´t as unique as before or add anything special to the soundscape. Another feature which is different from earlier releases is the drum tone. Allen always had a natural organic tone but on "The Shadow Inside" the drum tone is more cold and sterile sounding.

When you adjust to those changes the material on "The Shadow Inside" is still unmistakably the sound of Sadus, with sharp, aggressive, heavy thrash metal riffs and rhythms, occasionally faster-paced parts, and Travis sandpaper raw snarling vocals in front. The frenetic high-speed playing of the first couple of releases were already lessened on the mid-90s albums, so it´s not surprising that the pace on "The Shadow Inside" is predominantly mid-tempo and heavy, but Sadus still pack a punch and deliver some crushingly heavy tunes.

There´s no revolution of sound or style on "The Shadow Inside", and of course most listeners will miss DiGiorgio´s busy fretless bass playing, but when all is said and done this is still a good quality release and it´s great to know that Sadus still exist. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

siLLy puPPy TURBULENCE has made the most impact as a progressive metal band simply by coming from a nation that isn’t usually associated with the extreme side of Western extreme music. The band formed in 2013 in Lebanon riding in the wake of bands like Myrath who were putting the Middle Eastern nations on the map for metal music. The band released its debut “Disequilibrium” in 2015 but mostly went unheard and it would be six more long years before the band released its second album “Frontal.”

This is where i and many others finally heard about this band and experienced its Dream Theater inspired proggy metal for the first time. I was impressed. While not exactly charting unexplored territory in the vast world of prog metal, TURBULENCE crafted an excellent album that sounded part Dream Theater, part Leprous, part Haken and a whole slew of similar sounding bands. The band was dripping with confidence and the ability to pull off its chameleonesque music magic guaranteed “Frontal” picked up more than a few fans.

Fast forward four years and TURBULENCE is back with its third slab of polyrhythmic prog with the title BINARY DREAMS that implements crunchy djent riffing, rhythmic complexities and touches of jazz fusion all dressed up in molten metal ferocity. The band retained the same lineup with the exception of keyboardist Mood Yassin who replaces Mahamoud Yasine. Featuring six vocal tracks and three instrumentals, BINARY DREAMS runs about 49 minutes and once again delivers a veritable hybrid effect of Dream Theater, Leprous and even a bit of Riverside and Shadow Gallery this time around.

A concept album that tells the tale of a robot at the center of an experiment called “Binary Dreaming,” the saga results in the android entity achieving self-awareness and becomes sentient, a possible warning of the worries of the rampant development of the artificial intelligence technologies sweeping the planet in the 21st century. BINARY DREAMS pretty much carries on as the logical next step of “Frontal” without changing the game plan. Once again this is progressive metal in the traditional 90s sense with alternating clean guitar mellow motifs that give way to knotty guitar riff dominance that allows the groovy bass and drumming technicalities to unleash their full potential.

Once again the star of the show is lead vocalist Omar El Hage who really does have the perfect vocal ability for this style of prog metal that demands a firm control and an even more demanding range. Sounding just a tad like Chris Cornell of Soundgarden, El Hage’s lyrical deliveries align perfectly with the soft and soothing quieter aspects of the album as well as they do with the more boisterous metal moments. While the band does weave in its indigenous Arabic folk music into the mix, it’s actually very subtle and to my ears at least virtually undetectable. While not as rowdy or symphonically based as guitarist Alain Ibrihim’s other band Ostura, the band delivers a great mix of the more intricate and tender aspects of prog metal with the perfect appropriation of the heavy metal.

Not much really to set this one apart from the last. If the previous “Frontal” appealed to you then you will find a lot to love here. Same deal really. Not reinventing the wheel but certainly crafting an above average slice of traditional prog metal in a style that many claim has been oversaturated. For me these types of bands are hit and miss and it really boils down to the performances and in the end it’s really both the strong compositions and the vocals that win me over. While a few more faster tempos segments would’ve been appreciated, as it stands it’s a really great album for what it delivers. This is the dreamier side of prog metal so it helps if you can appreciate soft tones and lush atmospheric backdrops.

siLLy puPPy SETHERIAL is a second wave black metal band formed in Sundsvall, Sweden in 1993 and has gone through numerous lineup changes over its existence but founded by Mysteriis (guitar), Devothan (bass), Cheeroth (vocals) and Zathanel (drums). Sweden was following in the footsteps of Norway in the world of black metal and SETHERAL was one of a handful of metal bands that chose to not follow the melo-death scene. Other bands included Marduk, Sacramentum, Vinterland and of course Dissection. While those bands have become fairly well known in the world of black metal, SETHERIAL still remains a bit on the unknown side despite delivering a competent second wave furor that captures the spirit of raging evil black metal from Scandinavia.

The band released the two track EP “För dem mitt blod” in 1995 and then followed in 1996 with its frenetic debut NORD… which captured all the essential ingredients of the 90s black metal scene including raspy possessed vocals, buzzsaw guitar sustain and thundering riffs, blurred bass galloping and of course all those excellent free radical blastbeats. While unintelligible, lyrics were delivered in both Swedish and English. The album featured six tracks at over 45 minutes with the opening “In the Still of a Northern Fullmoon” swallowing up 12 minutes of playing time. This introductory track pretty much sets the tone of what to expect for the entire album’s run with the expected crushing second wave black metal parts fortified with moments of acoustic guitar, folk melodies and constructs a frigid anguished atmospheric presence.

NORD delivers a style of melodic black metal in the vein of Dissection which is more on the brutal side of the spectrum with excellent musicianship delivered by the lineup of vocalist Kraath, bassist Thorn and guitarists Lord Mysterii and Devothan. Guest drummer Anders delivers the ferocity on percussion and Peter Tägtgren adds some additional vocal contributions. This is the raw and evil as fuck black metal that your mother warned you about and it has all the hallmarks of rotting your soul and turning you into a church burning Satanic war master if you don’t mind you p’s and q’s. While steeped in the familiarity of Scandinavian black metal of the 90s, the compositions are also a bit more complex than the average Darkthrone wannabe and careful listening will reveal a few atmospheric keyboards peeking through the incessant din of the rampaging procession throughout NORD.

Graced with a menacingly beautiful album cover, NORD delivers what the bleakness portends with an incessantly quickened even manic delivery of second wave black metal splendor. It took a few listens for this to sink in otherwise a single exposure may insinuate the album as a tad generic but attentiveness reveals tricks up these black metal masters’ sleeves and ultimately this does have all the hallmarks of a black metal classic unfortunately got buried down the heap due to a glut of talented artists vying for the rights to write Satan’s soundtrack. NORD delivers everything you could possibly want from a no nonsense second wave black metal album with an uncompromising thunderous roar of cacophonous excellence. The variations within tracks helps set this apart from the generic followers of the day so it’s just a matter of time before SETHERIAL finds its way into the upper echelons of black metal royalty.

siLLy puPPy When you think of all the extreme metal that emerged from Sweden during the 1990s and early 2000s it’s easy to assume that every act emerged from the Gothenburg melo-death scene or the world of progressive metal first started by Opeth. While Norway was dominating the black metal market, Sweden’s Bathory actually played a major role in starting it all while band’s like Candlemass were developing a new strain of epic doom metal but thrash metal? Well that seemed to be a metal style that passed Sweden by while the USA, Brazil and Germany were killin’ it.

Thrash metal wasn’t a complete stranger to Sweden with Bathory’s early black metal experiments basically being a thrash hybrid as well as Merciless getting in on the act during the initial thrash metal world domination. One band that doesn’t get much attention was the Växjö based HYPNOSIA that may have missed the initial thrash party but formed in 1995 as the second wave was getting underway. Inspired heavily by the old school thrash metal bands like Slayer, Dark Angel, Kreator, Sadus, early Death, Sodom and Sepultura, HYPNOSIA formed by Cab Castervall (guitars/vocals) and Mike Sjöstrand (drums) was determined to keep those sounds alive as the extreme metal world was splintering in a million different directions.

After the band released two successful demos, HYPNOSIA was featured in all the metal publications df the 90s and attracted the attention of the old school thrashers who craved a return to the “good old days” when thrash was brutal and pure. HYPNOSIA delivered exactly what they wanted and the interest led the band’s only album EXTREME HATRED which came out in the year 2000 and released on the Hammerheart label. Sounding more like it emerged from the fertile SF Bay Area scene in 1991 rather than 2000 Sweden, HYPNOSIA may have been late to the thrash party that waned in the mid-90s but displayed a commitment and ferocity that very few of the original thrash bands had retrained. Just think of what Metallica and Megadeath were releasing about this time!

EXTREME HATRED was a veritable mix of Teutonic thrash in the vein of Kreator with the technical thrash prowess of US bands like Sadus. While the band often gets associated with death metal i can’t really say i can detect anything from HYPNOSIA’s sound that really falls into the death metal category. The music is a brutal form of thrash metal all the way and as far as the vocals are concerned the band evokes a mix of Morbid Saint, Kreator, Demolition Hammer and bands like Dark Angel so death metal, no. Thrash metal all the way and despite the trend to merge extreme metal with progressive rock, the avant-garde or wildly experimental, HYPNOSIA delivered a very authentic slice of classic retro-thrash.

Given its staunch attachment to the past it’s not a surprise that EXTREME HATRED is not the most original thrash metal album of all time but it certainly is worthy of thrash metal fan’s attention for its uncanny attention to detail and it’s dedication to redrafting a veritable art form that had fallen from grace as the alternative 90s disrupted the flow of the mainstream metal movements that developed in the mid-80s on. Despite not exactly developing a unique style all their own, HYPNOSIA nevertheless dished out an authentic representation of pure thrash metal in an unadulterated form with higher than average competency level. As far as i’m concerned this is an excellent album as HYPNOSIA featured the perfect vocal style accompanied by energetic thrash guitar, bass and drum assaults. The melodic aspects are perfectly balanced with the aggressive brutality and the overall performance are quite effective. Brutality at its best. A second album was in the works but never emerged and the band split in 2002.

UMUR "Preach Eternal Gospels" is an EP release by Dutch death/doom metal act Phlebotomized. The EP was released through Malodorous Mangled Innards Records in the autumn of 1993. It´s the successor to the September 1992 "In Search of Tranquillity" EP. The "In Search of Tranquillity" EP didn´t feature any new material though as all material featured on the EP were culled from the March 1992 "Devoted To God" demo. So the material on "Preach Eternal Gospels" is the first new original compositions from Phlebotomized since the release of "Devoted To God". "Tragic Entanglement" and "Ataraxia" from "Devoted To God" have however been re-recorded and included here, so "Preach Eternal Gospels" actually only features three completely new tracks in "In Memory of Our Departured Ones (1914-1918)", "Mustardgas", and "Preach Eternal Gospels".

It´s Phlebotomized first professional studio recording and it means a lot as a listener to be able to hear their progressive inclined old school death/doom metal with better sounding production values than the ones found on their early demo recordings. This is a band with many interesting songwriting ideas and compostional details, which are now audible in the soundscape. In addition to heavy distorted guitar riffs and drumming, the music also features some gloomy/eerie sounding keyboards and a violinist has also been added to the ranks since the last release, which provides the band´s music with another layer. This would unfortunately be Barry Schuyer´s last release with Phlebotomized, because his ultra brutal deep growling vocals are both powerful and well performed.

If comparisons should be made to any contemporary artists I´d mention Pan.Thy.Monium as the band who Phlebotomized have most in common with. The unpreditability of the song structures, the use of gloomy/eerie sounding keyboards, and the adventurous approach to songwriting. This is a band who can go from sounding like a lot of other old school death metal artists from the early 90s (with both heavy mid-paced sections and faster-paced blasting), to playing melancholic/mournful doom/death metal parts, to playing some pretty interesting progressive ideas. All within the same song. Definitely worth a listen this one. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "In Search of Tranquillity" is an EP release by Dutch death/doom metal act Phlebotomized. The EP was released through Malodorous Mangled Innards Records in September 1992. It follows the release of the March 1992 "Devoted To God" demo and the three tracks on the EP are actually culled directly from the demo. It´s the three opening tracks from the demo. So there´s nothing new on this EP if you already own the demo.

Stylistically this is death/doom metal with faster death metal parts too (even blasting) and a brutal growling vocalist. What makes Phlebotomized stand out from the crowd is their use of gloomy/eerie sounding keyboards which provide their music with something a bit different from other contemporary artists. This is still pretty grim and brutal old school death metal though, but just with the occasionally added slightly progressive edge because of the addition of keyboards.

"In Search of Tranquillity" is an atmospheric instrumental intro track while both "Subtle Disbalanced Liquidity" and "Desecration of Alleged Christian History" are more regular death/doom metal tracks. The quality of the material is decent and these early recordings from Phlebotomized are certainly promising and also well performed and relatively well produced (considering that these recordings are culled from a demo). A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Paranormal" is the fourth demo recording (if you discount the "Live Karnage" demo tape) by Canadian thrash metal act Slaughter. The demo was independently released in 1988 and follows the release of the band´s 1987 debut full-length studio album "Strappado". The band have added second guitarist Bobby Sadzak to the ranks, making Slaughter a quartet on "Paranormal".

It´s a professionally recorded demo and it was actually meant to be released as Slaughter´s second full-length studio album, but as bassist/vocalist Terry Sadler left, the remaining members disbanded Slaughter and subsequently changed the band name to Strappado (by that point only Hewson and Sadzak remained), which meant they didn´t want to release the material they had recorded as a Slaughter album. Quite a few of the tracks from "Paranormal" would be re-recorded and included on Strappado´s 1991 debut full-length studio album "Not Dead Yet".

Stylistically this sounds very much like the natural successor to "Strappado". It features a similar raw, dark, and aggressive thrash metal style, but Slaughter have developed their style just enough not to stagnate which means that "Paranormal" features more riffs and a slightly more technical approach to playing, which to my ears becomes Slaughter well. Other than that fans of "Strappado" should of course get their hands on this demo. It´s both well produced, well performed, and features relatively memorable songwriting. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Strappado" is the debut full-length studio album by Canadian thrash metal act Slaughter. The album was released through Diabolic Force (on vinyl)/Fringe Product (on casette tape) in 1987. The material featured on "Strappado" was already recorded and mixed in February 1986, but it took a year for the album to get a release. "Strappado" is a bit of an underground "classic" in the more raw end of the thrash metal spectrum, but Slaughter have also received some retrospective attention as Chuck Schuldiner (Death, Control Denied) was shortly a member of the band. Schuldiner was not part of the lineup who recorded "Strappado" though. The trio lineup who recorded the album consists of: Dave Hewson (vocals, guitar), Terry Sadler (vocals, bass), and Ron Summers (drums).

"Strappado" is a raw, aggressive, and heavy hardcore tinged thrash metal release featuring angry shouting vocals. It´s pretty simple and primitive music and won´t appeal to those who crave a bit of technical playing in their music. This is straight forward and the tracks typically only feature two riffs which are repeated ad nauseam. I´d say Hellhammer and to a lesser extent early Venom (and there´s definitely an occasional Motörhead influence in there too) are Slaughter´s closest relatives and also influences (they´ve covered both on their early demos).

"Strappado" is a short album featuring only nine tracks and a total playing time of 23:34. At least two of their preceding demos featured longer playing times, but considering the primitive, repetitive, and simple nature of Slaughter´s music, a short playing time is probably wise to not wear the listener down. Upon conclusion "Strappado" is a decent quality debut album from Slaughter. Other than the brutal buzzing guitar tone I´m not sure why people refer to this album as proto-death metal because I hear little here which points in that direction, but to each his own. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Nocturnal Hell" is a single/EP release by Canadian thrash metal act Slaughter. The single/EP was released through Fringe Product in 1986. All three tracks from the single/EP were recorded during the samme February 1986 sessions which spawned the material which ended up being Slaughter´s 1987 debut full-length studio album "Strappado". In fact all material from this single/EP appear on "Strappado" in exactly the same versions.

So in that respect "Nocturnal Hell" is a bit redundant these days, but back then the single/EP of course functioned as a teaser for the forthcoming full-length release and it should be evaluated on its own merits. If you´re familar with the preceding demo releases by Slaughter the raw, aggressive, and hardcore tinged thrash metal style found on "Nocturnal Hell" isn´t a surprise. It´s slightly more interesting material, heavier, and darker, but other than that this sounds a lot like Slaugther also did on the "Surrender or Die" demo from April 1985 (maybe with a few less heavy/speed metal influences). A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Devoted To God" is the second demo recording by Dutch death/doom metal act Phlebotomized. The demo was independently released in March 1992. It´s the follow-up release to the July 1991 "Live" demo. Three of the songs from the live demo have been re-recorded and included here ("Subtle Disbalanced Liquidity", "Devoted to God", and "Tragic Entanglement"). "Devoted To God" was an immensely succesful demo release for Phlebotomized, who after selling 1.000 copies of the demo tape, licensed the demo to Polish label Carnage Records, who then manufactured another 2.000 copies and sold them. Just think about it...3.000 copies of a demo tape.

The potential which was heard on the "Live" demo is fully realized here. The studio sound production is still raw and brutal, but you can hear all instruments and vocals in the mix. Stylistically the material is death/doom metal with gloomy/eerie sounding keyboards. There are still faster-paced death metal parts (even blasting) here, so their death metal/grindcore past under the Bacterial Disease monicker hasn´t been completely forgotten. The vocals are brutal death metal growling.

The demo features a couple of shorter intro/outro/breather tracks, so it´s only four out of the seven tracks featured on the 28:10 minutes long demo, which are "regular" death/doom metal songs. The tracks are relatively unconventionally structured and the addition of keyboards provide Phlebotomized with a progressive touch. They certainly ensure that "Devoted To God" isn´t like listening to any other death metal demo from that time. So this is definitely an interesting and quite adventurous death/doom metal release from the early 90s and it´s well worth investigating. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Live" is the first demo recording by Dutch death/doom metal act Phlebotomized. The demo was independently released in July 1991. It was recorded live on July 4th, 1991 at Hardrock Party in Demi-Sec, Spijkenisse, The Netherlands. The demo was not widely distributed but predominantly given away by the band members to friends and at live shows.

It´s a bit unusual for a band to release a live demo as their first release (mostly debut demos from that time were rehearsal demos or relatively lo-fi 4-track tape recorder demos). Phlebotomized have however managed to produce a decent sounding live demo which in terms of production values are a least on par with most contemporary rehearsal demos. It´s certainly both lo-fi, murky, and noisy, but you still get a good idea of what Phlebotomized are about. Although Phlebotomized are a bit more death metal oriented they tab into a lot of the same stylistic elements as their fellow contemporary countrymen in The Gathering. Doomy death metal with keyboards. Where The Gathering present a romantic and epic take on the genre Phlebotomized are a bit more brutal and gritty though. Early Paradise Lost is arguably a big influence on the sound here.

"Live" features four tracks and a total playing time of 27:24 minutes, so there is both quantity and time to get to know Phlebotomized. Although the band feature a permanent keyboard player in the lineup, the keyboards aren´t a dominant feature of Phlebotomized sound. at least not at this point, but when they are heard in the mix they add the right gloomy/eerie atmosphere to the music. Lead vocalist Barry Schuyer has a brutal growling vocal style and in terms of musicianship the band are solid. Nothing outstanding and nothing out of the ordinary for the time, but they are a well playing band. A 2.5 star (50%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Nighttime Birds" is the fourth full-length studio album by Dutch gothic metal (later atmospheric rock) act The Gathering. The album was released through Century Media Records in May 1997. It´s the successor to "Mandylion" from August 1995, which was The Gathering´s big breakthrough album. "Nighttime Birds" marks the first time up until then that The Gathering recorded an album featuring the same lineup (and lead singer) as the album which came before it. They had searched for consistency and a sound they could call their own, and with the addition of lead vocalist Anneke van Giersbergen, they found that sound on "Mandylion".

So it´s only natural that "Nighttime Birds" is more or less a sibling release to "Mandylion". This was not the time to change a winning formula, but merely perfect it...and that The Gathering did. "Mandylion" is a great album in its own right, but when you listen to "Nighttime Birds", it feels like "Mandylion" was just an album where The Gathering were testing their new songwriting approach and then they went on to nail it 100% on this album.

Stylistically the material on "Nighttime Birds" is a melancholic and atmospheric type of gothic/doom metal with van Giersbergen´s strong voice and distinct sounding vocal style leading the show. She is thankfully not an operatic type female vocalist, although she can hit some pretty impressive notes, and she is generally very intense and has a personal singing style. To my ears all three previous album releases weren´t written with vocals being the priority in the songwriting process, although "Mandylion" certainly showed improvement in that department over the first two albums. "Nighttime Birds" is on the other hand obviously an album composed primarily to support the beautiful vocal lines. All instruments are composed to support and compliment the vocals and provide them with the best possible conditions to shine.

The keyboards which had been very much at the forefront of the band´s music up until then are much more tastefully applied here and often just add atmosphere or texture to the songs (as opposed to the lead instrument role they often played before), while the heavy distorted riffs and rhythms add doomy heaviness. There are however many sections without distorted guitars, which aren´t that heavy and add an atmospheric/dreamy rock element to the band´s sound. The simple melancholic melodic guitar leads deserve a mention too and the bass playing by Hugo Prinsen Geerligs is also an important element.

"Nighttime Birds" features a gorgeous sounding production. It´s dynamic, powerful, and perfectly suits the material. All details are heard in the music and the mix favors both mellow dreamy parts and massive epic heavy sections. I wasn´t surprised to learn that the album was recorded at Woodhouse Studio in Hagen, Germany with producer/engineer Siggi Bemm. That´s a name which is a guarantee for high quality sound productions.

So "Nighttime Birds" is everything a fan of "Mandylion" had hoped it would be. More dynamic, even stronger musicianship, superior sound production values, and vocal-centric songwriting which focus on The Gathering´s greatest asset, which in those days was arguably the voice and vocals of van Giersbergen. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.