UMUR "Vault of Horrors" is the twelfth full-length studio album by Belgian death metal act Aborted. The album was released through Nuclear Blast in March 2024. It´s the successor to "Maniacult" from September 2021. The two full-length studio albums are bridged by the non-album single "Infinite Terror" from October 2022.

Stylistically the core sound of the material on "Vault of Horrors" is no surprise if you´re familiar with the previous technically well played and brutal death metal releases from Aborted, but when that is said it´s still a slightly different sounding release, because Aborted have invited various guests to perform vocals on each track on the album along with lead vocalist Sven de Caluwé. So some of the these tracks almost work like extreme metal duets. Alex Erian from Despised Icon for example lends his aggressive hardcore snarling/screaming to "Death Cult", which along with de Caluwé´s brutal growling and aggressive snarling makes for a nicely varied vocal part of the song.

When the novelty of the tracks featuring different guest vocalists is over, "Vault of Horrors" however pretty much turns out to be Aborted by the numbers. Sharp and brutal riffs and rhythms, blistering lead guitar work, and variation between fast-paced blasting and mid-paced heavy grooves. It´s all clean, a bit sterile, and if you enjoy this type of massive professional sounding production, a very well sounding album. It´s become a bit predictable what Aborted releases these days (guest vocalists or not), and a bit more grit, sleaze, and organic playing and production values, would be a welcome change on the next release. Still a 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating is deserved.

Sheavy Aaannnnddd the winner of most unexpected 2024 album release goes to Toadliquor. 31 years after they dropped one of the most vile, angry, and unique Sludge/Doom metal albums, the legends return with their sophomore release Back In The Hole. So what has changed in the world of Toadliquor’s sound? Not all that much. Vocalist Rex doesn’t quite hit the high, almost ear piercing, throat ripping shriek of old. It’s more of a raspy yell or scream, not quite as powerful, but still communicates Toadliquor’s angst and nihilism. The songs are also (relatively speaking) tighter, and more concise. Less prone to droning off and dropping into feedback, but don’t worry, Toadliquor have lost none of their angry, brutal, misanthropic, crushing heaviness. Every song is precipitous, monolithic Doom leaning Sludge Metal.

However, there is something new in the Toadliquor arsenal, giving this album an experimental bent at times. This being a scattering of various electronic, psychedelic, or almost Post Metal interludes or inflections across most songs. On Recained, Toadliquor delve into a trippy, psychedelic midsection, filled with synth drones and electric pulses, ponderous reverbed drumming, squealing and muted saxophone, and some drowned out vocals. The namesake song and album closer, Back In The Hole, opens with some somber, drifting and depressive Post Rock guitar and synth, before slowly transitioning into the Sludge/Doom pounding and riffing, while the almost melodic guitar parts soar above.

This is an excellent return to the spotlight for Toadliquor.

UMUR "Masters Of Morbidity" is a single release by US, Ohio based death metal act 200 Stab Wounds. The single was released through Metal Blade Records in April 2023. It succeeds the release of the band´s debut full-length studio album "Slave To The Scalpel" from November 2021. This is a two-track version of the single. A single track version of the single (featuring only the title track) was already released in November 2022.

This two-track version of the single features the title track and "Fatal Reality". Both are new original compositions which didn´t appear on the "Slave To The Scalpel" album. Stylistically 200 Stab Wounds play a heavy and predominantly mid-paced old school groove based type of death metal and that hasn´t changed since the debut album. Both single tracks are good quality US death metal and especially the title track is a quality song.

200 Stab Wounds are a well playing band and the single features good quality production values, so upon conclusion this is a good quality stop-gap release before 200 Stab Wounds deliver their sophomore full-length studio album. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Seven Crowns And Seven Seals" is the fourth full-length studio album by German death metal act Sulphur Aeon. The album was released through Van Records in October 2023. It´s the successor to "The Scythe of Cosmic Chaos" from December 2018. Five years is a pretty long time between album releases even these days, but Sulphur Aeon did release the "Unaussprechliche Kulte (Live at Culthe Fest 2019)" live album in 2020 as a stop gap release.

Stylistically the material on "Seven Crowns And Seven Seals" is a new musical direction for Sulphur Aeon. They still play a technical blackened death metal style, but the suffocating and at times chaotic layering of the previous releases have been replaced by clear and detailed production values, which provide the band´s music with an almost completely different sound. The transformation towards this more accessible sound was already initiated on "The Scythe of Cosmic Chaos", but Sulphur Aeon have taken this songwriting approach a step further on "Seven Crowns And Seven Seals". while the music can still be brutal, blasting, and heavy, Sulphur Aeon also incorporate a lot of atmospheric parts and the dynamics of the music also shifs a lot. When they are most melodic and atmospheric I´m sometimes reminded of Gojira, and that´s certainly not an influence I´ve heard in their music before.

It´s interesting how some artists stagnate while others continue to seek new musical discoveries and push the boundaries of their musical expression, but what´s more interesting is how fans of an artist perceive change and development of sound. In the case of Sulphur Aeon I´ve read opinions in both ends of the spectrum regarding their change from suffocating chaos to the more accessible sound on "Seven Crowns And Seven Seals", but to my ears this is a high quality release, which is both challenging, melodic, epic, and intriguing (but ultimately quite easily accessible for the genre). A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

siLLy puPPy As one of the pioneers of symphonic black metal with his innovative band Emperor, IHSAHN together with his buddy Samoth left the 90s as one of the most influential and popular black metal bands of the entire decade. While Emperor would stop making albums in 2001, IHSAHN focused on his side project Peccatum briefly but ultimately reemerged as a solo artist in 2006 with a shift to a more progressive avant-garde metal sound that still retained the core elements of black metal. It all began with “The Adversary” and some 18 years later IHSAHN is still cranking out quality experimental metal with his latest self-titled eighth album once again capturing the attention of the world of extreme metal.

Deviating significantly from 2018’s “Àmr” which saw IHSAHN approaching a more commercial sound at times, this eponymously titled release looks back to the Emperor years and rekindles the spirit of symphonic black metal only this time he replaces the synthesized embellishments with a fuller orchestral sound courtesy of advancements in sampling technologies. While orchestrated metal albums are hardly anything new, IHSAHN delivers a anew approach that eschews a mere symphonic backing and rather features two independent musical scores laid upon each other resulting in not only a more dynamic symphonic metal approach but also by spawning a secondary release that features the orchestral side of the equation exclusively.

Almost sounding like Emperor is playing over a Hollywood blockbuster soundtrack of some sort, IHSAHN crafts his usual mix of nerdy progressive metal replete with all the avant-garde elements that makes him exist in a world of his own along with the black metal raspy vocals, thundering guitar riffs and percussion to match. The album that features 11 tracks at nearly 49 minutes is reminiscent of some of Dimmu Borgir’s later releases that offer an equal playing field for the orchestral musical score that oft soars above the black metal mania. And while the album sounds like IHSAHN has been accompanied by an entire philharmonic orchestra at times, the guest musicians only add up to three additional percussionists and a violinist leaving IHSAHN the chore of handling vocals, guitar, bass and orchestral sampling.

IHSAHN is actually quite a diverse album (would you expect anything else?) with varying tracks that features clean vocal led prog metal as on “The Promethean Spark” to full out raging black metal on such tracks as “A Taste Of The Ambrosia” but scattered throughout are tidbits of pure classical orchestration as heard on the opening “Cervus Venator” and the middle intermission “Anima Extraneae.” Tempos vary, dynamics vary and stylistic approach may but the gist of this is a mix of crunchy black metal in tandem with classical orchestrations. Tracks like “Blood Trails To Love” feature a mix of the clean vocal prog metal with the raspy more extreme black. While hinting at Emperor’s past glories, the metal on this release isn’t nearly as full throttle as such magnus opuses as “In The Nightshade Eclipse.”

Overall IHSAHN is a decent album but it’s a bit uneven with no clear stylistic approach really dominating. While that can become a good thing if the sum of the parts add up to something more profound, this album seems a bit scattered which at times reveals both the metal aspects and the orchestral ones seem to cancel each other out a bit. The novelty of orchestral metal has long worn off and the execution of this seems less than satisfying. The addition of dreadfully long moments such as the album’s 9-minute version of a ballad - “At The Heart Of All Things Broken” is actually really cheesy and i seriously would love to cut that entire track from the playing list.

The album seems to lose steam too much with half-assed percussion and metal that doesn’t get up to full force. The orchestral parts just seem to dance around and don’t really offer a very memorable experience either in a meaningful way. All in all it’s a decent album but hardly one of IHSAHN’s best. All the rave reviews about this bely it’s downsides. I was somewhat impressed on the first listen but more attentive listening sessions reveal serious flaws that i can’t shake. The patchiness of the album ruins its flow but as on all IHSAHN albums there are more than enough moments of triumphant victory. As a true fan i couldn’t imagine not owning this but it certainly won’t rank as a top contender for favorite IHSAHN releases.

siLLy puPPy PSICOSFERA is an all-instrumental quartet that emerged in the suburb of Morón just outside the city of Buenos AIres, Argentina in 2013. The band experienced three distinct phases, the first lineup that lasted up to and included the debut album ALPHA, the second lineup that produced the sophomore release “Beta,” and the third which added a vocalist and focused more on the black metal aspects. On this debut from 2015, PSICOSFERA consisted of Gabriel Luque (guitar), Gabriel Sabatini (guitar), Juan Facundo Brinville (drums) and Juan Martin Venezia (bass, 2013-15).

This idiosyncratic band has found a way to amalgamate disparate styles of metal and offers a totally new methodology of delivering. By taking the tones, dissonance and cosmic dread of Deathspell Omega, PSICOSFERA has forged a veritable blend of djent-ish post-metal that drifts mid-tempo through 9 tracks (simply titled as Roman numerals) that add up to almost 43 minutes. While sounding like a strain of black metal, the musical procession is not anything like the torturous bleakness of bands like Germany’s Ascension or Blut Aus Nord but offers a touch of dissonant death metal in the vein of Ulcerate or Gorguts without really being death metal all the while meandering through semi-progressive game changers without truly being prog.

This album is a smooth flow of transitions although abrupt changes occur but despite heavy dissonant power chords ceding to clean guitar arpeggios and moments of respite erupting into loud frenzies of instrumental interplay, ALPHA logically connects and doesn’t deliver a strange mix of avant-garde freakery but rather a coordinated attack of instrumental prowess most resembling a typical instrumental post-rock / post-metal act. The absence of vocals gives the entire affair an abstract feel to it but the relaxed oft sludgy chords are designed to evoke philosophical reflection and human suffering. Not sure that translated well but the darkened tones and bleak overall atmosphere certainly evokes a sense of discombobulation that doesn’t resolve throughout the album’s run.

The band is skilled at playing their unique spin on proggy djent delivered in a post-metal procession however the tracks begin to sound a bit repetitive by end’s length and the addition of a wider pallet of influences might’ve served it well but as it is it’s not a bad listening experience at all and allows for a nice drifting escapism albeit a noise boisterous din of one. I always admire bands that know how to develop their own style in between the cracks of the existing genre and evoke the sense of many metal styles simultaneously without really sounding like any. PSICOSFERA has certainly achieved that lofty task but at this point the band still lacks the ability to craft enough disparate ideas to take their stylized efforts to the next level. Still though a very interesting album despite it all.

UMUR "Perspectives" is the second full-length studio album by Canadian industrial death metal act Inner Thought. The album was released through Witchhunt Records in 1995. It´s the successor to "Worldly Separation" from 1993. Inner Thought is a one-man project featuring Bobby Sadzak who performs all guitars, keyboards, and drum programming. The growling/high pitched screaming vocals on this album are performed by Dennis Balesdent. The remaining instruments and occasional female vocals are performed by sessions/guest musicians.

Listening to "Perspectives" is could almost seem like Sadzak had read my review of "Worldly Separation", because some of my issues with that album have been solved on "Perspectives". The sound production is heavier and the music is generally more dark and brutal than on the debut album and less ethereal and dominated by keyboards. Of course there are still keyboards in the music and the drums are also still programmed, but Sadzak have found a better balance on "Perspectives".

The churning heavy riffs and rhythms, the aggressive growling vocals, and they atmosphere enhancing keyboards and lead guitar parts go hand and hand on this album and don´t feel disconnected. So while this isn´t a masterpiece recording by any means, it´s a good quality release which is certainly worth a listen to two. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Disorder of Battles" is an EP release by Canadian industrial death metal act Inner Thought. The EP was released through Witchhunt Records in 1993. It´s a companion release to Inner Thought´s debut full-length studio album "Worldly Separation".

...and companion release is the right term to use here, because you get absolutely nothing new by purchasing "Disorder of Battles" as the two tracks featured on the EP are culled directly from "Worldly Separation" and both appear here in the exact same versions as the versions featured on the album. So this is one of those completely redundant EP releases where you can´t help think what the label was thinking. They could at least have put one song on the EP, which hadn´t already appeared on the album...but no.

So upon conclusion "Disorder of Battles" is a redundant/unneccesary release, which does feature some decent quality industial death metal, but you should of course purchase the full-length studio album instead. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted for the actual content of the EP. The idea to release the EP gets a 0,5 star (10%) rating.

UMUR "Worldly Separation" is the debut full-length studio album by Canadian industrial death metal act Inner Thought. The album was released through Witchhunt Records in 1993. Inner Thought was formed in 1989 by Bobby Sadzak. Sadzak had been a member of Canadian thrash metal act Lethal Presence in the mid-80s, and joined Slaughter in 1987 and subsequently also co-founded post-Slaughter act Strappado with Dave Hewson. The early 90s was spend with recording and touring with Strappado, but Sadzak always had Inner Thought as a one-man project on the side and as activitives with Strappado came to a hold in 1993 he opted to spend time recording "Worldly Separation".

Stylistically this is industrial tinged death metal featuring both drum programming and an omnipresense of keyboards (and occasional samples and spoken words sections). The sound production is a bit thin, which is a shame because I´m sure that a more massive and heavy sounding production could have elevated the music to a higher state. The current sound production leaves a bit to be desired, although it´s not an amaturish sounding release.

The album is dedicated to all innocent victims of war and that theme is obvious from the lyrics and the atmosphere of the album. This is a melancholic album displaying despair at the state of the world. Heavy riffs and rhythms, growling snarling vocals, and atmosphere enhancing keyboards and lead guitars. I must admit that I enjoy this album most when it´s darkest, heaviest, og most brutal, and less when it´s too ethereal and carried by the keyboards and the programmed drums. But that´s a subjective observation and objectively evaluated this is a good quality industrial tinged death metal release. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Ki" is the tenth full-length studio album by Canadian artist Devin Townsend. The album was released through HevyDevy Records (Townsend´s own label) in May 2009. It´s the successor to "Ziltoid The Omniscient" from May 2007 and marks the end of a 2 year release hiatus, which at the time was an unusually long break between releases for Townsend. After a period of hectic recording and touring activity, Townsend however decided that he would withdraw from touring, to concentrate on family life and on getting sober from his addiction to alcohol and drugs. He recorded and released "Ziltoid The Omniscient" during the first period of his isolation, but then stopped writing music for a full year, before returning to composing at full force, writing around 60 tracks, some of which ended up on "Ki". Townsend brought in drummer Duris Maxwell and bassist Jean Savoie who he had never worked with before, and also asked former Devin Townsend Band member Dave Young to join the project and play keyboards. Female vocalist Ché Aimee Dorval (who Townsend would create the Casualties of Cool duo project with a few years down the line) sings additional vocals on the album.

Compared to "Ziltoid The Omniscient", "Ki" is a completely different type of release. It´s still unmistakably a Devin Townsend album (although released under The Devin Townsend Project monicker), but it´s predominantly a non-distorted, non-metal oriented release (although it can still be pretty heavy at times). Instead Townsend have opted for a stripped down, organic, and earthy rock sound, which often works through tension and release type dynamics. It´s sometimes a pretty intense album, and often not meant for mellow listening pleasure, so it´s not one of those atmospheric and pretty acoustic guitar releases, although the album does feature a good share of mellow and laid back sections and tracks. Some of the tracks feature jam parts combined with more structured sections and the whole album feels loose and creative in spirit. Featuring 13 tracks and a total playing time of 66:50 minutes, it´s also a pretty long release.

"Ki" is probably Townsend´s most personal release in terms of the lyrical subjects which include subjects like dealing with sober life, self-discovery, and spirituality. "Ki" features a gorgeous organic and earthy sound production. It´s an absolutely brilliant production, where you can hear every detail of the music and all instruments and vocals are well balanced in the mix. It´s interesting to hear Townsend´s music presented in this type of production package, as it stands in great contrast to his usual wall of sound/multi-layered sound productions, but that´s pretty obviously the whole point of "Ki"...to produce a release which sounds vastly different from anything which Townsend had been involved in before.

Personally I find "Ki" a very hard album to get into and it´s taken me many years to get through the album and many re-visits to be able to write something about it. And it´s not because it´s an overtly complex release in terms of the song structures or challenging parts, but it´s the whole atmosphere and the sometimes slow building and repetitive nature of the music (which is often laid back and ambient), which has taken me a while (well...actually a very long time) to get into. Even after all this time "Ki" still leaves me a bit perplexed...

...I´m sure the often idiosyncratic Townsend would be delighted if he read my reaction to "Ki" and the struggles I´ve been through to understand what he has created, but at some point you do have to ask yourself if it´s worth it. Some albums just seem to alienate you even though you try everything to understand them and appreciate them. And that´s how I felt about "Ki" for many years. But understanding and appreciating music sometimes comes down to experience with different types of music, the real life situation you´re experiencing at the given moment, and maybe who you listen to the music with. Negative feelings often create a negative reaction to difficult music, because you don´t have the emotional surplus to grasp it.

The point is that "Ki" is one of the most unique but also one of the most difficult releases in Devin Townsend´s discography, and it´s one of those releases which is an aquired taste. Just because you think of yourself as a Townsend fan doesn´t mean you´ll be able to appreciate "Ki". In parts maybe, but probably not the full album in one sitting unless you´re one of those rare folks who get it right away. But while you should consider yourself warned at this point, I would still urge you to give "Ki" a listen. This is the work of a real artist trying something new and working outside his comfort zone, and while I still have a way to go before I completely surrender to "Ki", there are arguably musical treasures buried on the album, which deserve to be discovered. The only way to find them...is to keep digging. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Existence Indifferent" is the debut full-length studio album by Finnish death metal act Atakhama. The album was released through Woodcut Records in April 2005. Atakhama formed in 2004 after the demise of some of the member´s previous band melodic black metal act Funeris Nocturnum. Four out of the five members of the lineup actually came from Funeris Nocturnum and only lead vocalist Jimmy Salmi is completely new to the party (although he had experience from other acts previous to joining Atakhama).

Stylistically it´s like listening to a less intense Deicide meeting the more brutal grooves of Dyscarnate. Although Atakhama are a well playing unit and vocalist Salmi deliver both grutal growling and higher pitched aggressive screaming vocals with passion and conviction, they don´t quite reach the two mentioned influences in terms of quality of material. "Existence Indifferent" is still a good quality death metal release with good rhythmic variation, just a slight bit of melody when that is needed, and death metal- and thrash metal oriented riffs, and the occassional heavy grooves. The sound production is decent, but the drums do have an annoying clicky sound, and especially the bass drums sound a little wrong.

So upon conclusion "Existence Indifferent" is a decent first release from Atakhama (it would be their sole release as they disbanded soon after), but it´s nothing out of the ordinay for the genre. Well composed, well performed, and relatively well produced. A 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.

UMUR "Heir to Despair" is the eleventh full-length studio album by Japanese avantgarde/progressive metal act Sigh. The album was released through Spinefarm Records in November 2018. It´s the successor to "Graveward" from 2015, and the album features the exact same quartet lineup who recorded the predecessor.

As always Sigh have managed to incorporate new musical elements to their progressive blackened heavy/speed metal style and this time around it´s the inclusion of traditional Japanese instruments and the fact that Mirai Kawashima (keyboards, vocals, vocoder, programming, main composer) have learned to play the flute (and occasionally use it on the tracks like he does on album opener "Aletheia"), which are the most dominent new elements. There are of course other new adventurous ideas on the album, but if you´re familiar with the preceding releases from Sigh you of course wouldn´t expect it any other way. Kawashima just never ceases to amaze. He is such an incredible musical capacity, who seems to be able to do anything he sets his mind to (learning to play the flute before recording this album was probably a walk in the park for him).

The main vocal style is the usual raspy blackened snarling, but the extreme metal vocal style is complimented by both male and female clean vocals, vocoder parts, and a varity of choirs and backing vocals. In addition to the traditional Japanese music influence there is also a strong middle eastern music element featured on the album. The basic guitar, bass, drums rock/metal band instrumentation are combined with Kawashima´s different keyboards/synths/organ/piano layering and his classical music influences are heard throughout the album.

Avantgarde/progressive heavy/speed metal with raw snarling blackened vocals may be the best overall description of the music, but Sigh are as always almost impossible to give a label which makes sense for the reader. Compared to "Graveward" my ears tell me that "Heir to Despair" is a slightly more well developed and tasteful release featuring a sound production, which is also a step up from the sound production of the predecessor (it´s clearer and more powerful sounding). This album is even close to being accessible at times. As an example take a listen to the sophisticated and very melodic Iron Maiden influenced lead- and harmony guitars on "Homo Homini Lupus" or the uplifting and melodic rocking "Hunters Not Horned". Avantgarde music never felt this pleasant and easy going before.

When that is said "Heir to Despair" is still a complex and demanding release featuring many layers of instruments and vocals, and a generally unconventional approach to composing music. Most tracks have recognisable vers/chorus parts, but everything else going on are quite unique when heard in this context. Upon conclusion "Heir to Despair" is another high quality release from Sigh, who are still one of the most original and creative acts on the scene. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Led Zeppelin" is the eponymously titled debut full-length studio album by UK rock act Led Zeppelin. The album was released through Atlantic Records in January 1969. Led Zeppelin were formed in London in 1968 and were originally called the New Yardbirds. After the Yardbirds disbanded in July 1968 guitarist Jimmy Page was left with ownership of the name and contractual obligations for a 1968 Scandinavian summer tour and he quickly recruited bassist John Paul Jones, lead vocalist Robert Plant, and drummer John Bonham, and the new lineup completed the Scandinavian tour playing both Yardbirds songs and material which would subsequently be Led Zeppelin songs. After returning from the tour the band changed their name to Led Zeppelin and within a few months entered Studio Olympic in London to start recording their debut album. Recording took place from September to October 1968.

The material on the nine tracks, 44:45 minutes long album are a combination of blues rock tracks which are covers of Willie Dixon ("You Shook Me" and "I Can't Quit You Baby") and original rock and hard rock songs. It´s a fairly varied album showing a band with an eclectic taste in music and expression. Only the percussion on "Black Mountain Side" provide a touch of laid back 60s psychedelic rock. Other than that this is a much more powerful, pretty hard edged (for the time), and skillfully executed rock album, than many of the psychedelic tinged hard rock albums from the previous couple of years (albums from artists like Iron Butterfly and Cream come to mind). Plant´s raw voice and screaming powerful delivery is a great asset to Led Zeppelin´s sound, but all four members of the band bring something special to the table. Page is a powerful but also versatile guitarist, and Jones is a hard rocking and clever bass player. Bonham is a hard pounding driving force and although his playing is pretty much at volume 11 at all times, he is still s skilled drummer with some interesting rhythm ideas.

Highlights include the heavy "Dazed and Confused" and "How Many More Times", the energetic proto-heavy metal oriented "Communication Breakdown", and the beautiful acoustic tinged "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You", but this album is through and through an exceptionally strong debut showing a band who have many interesting, eclectic, and clever songwriting ideas, and who perform their music with great power and conviction. I´m not sure that I think a song like "Your Time Is Gonna Come" would normally fit on an album like this, but again it goes to show that Led Zeppelin already this early on refused to be labelled and did exactly what they wanted to and succeeded in doing it.

The album features a powerful, organic, and detailed sound production. Although some tracks feature quite a few overdubs (mostly harmony guitars) it´s an album which feels like most of it was recorded live in the studio, and that´s what music like this deserves. Upon conclusion Led Zeppelin´s debut album was not only a groundbreaking rock album from the late 60s, but it´s also a good quality release showing an incredible amount of maturity and understanding of each other musical qualities considering that the band had only been together for a couple of months when they started recording the material. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

Sheavy Hailing from the deep south of Atlanta, Georgia, and appropriately were signed to Southern Lord, Dead In The Dirt’s sole full length, The Blind Hole, is a crushing, catastrophic slab of grinding Powerviolence. DITD deal in fairly typical PV lyrically and sonically speaking, but don’t even think for a second this is meant as insult. Frequent and Extreme start and stop tempo shifts, even within the confines of 60 second or less songs, often punctuated and preceded by squalls of feedback. Downtuned growling, grinding guitars thunder away to merciless but tight Hardcore drumming and blast beating. Occasionally settling into a more metal inspired mid-tempo or thrash groove, and some songs drop entirely into disgusting filthy Sludge Metal (Will Is The War and Halo Crown). As could be guessed from the album title, nay, band name, the lyrics all tend towards the introspective and unwaveringly nihilistic, often with political or social subtext. These are handled by dual vocalists, Bo Orr, also on Bass, and Blake Connally, also on Guitar. Dual vocalists means we are treated to differing delivery styles, one a Death Metal growl, and the other a Hardcore Punk styled full on shriek. Production wise it’s all very clear and clean, none of the dirt and grime, nor aggression and rawness is lost.

A beautiful, maniacal not quite 24 minute assault.

UMUR "Pits of Utumno" is the first demo recording by German death metal act Morgoth. The demo was independently released in June 1988. Morgoth formed in 1987, although their origins can be traced as far back as 1985 when they worked under the Cadaverous Smell, Exterminator, and Minas Morgul monickers (in that chronology in the period 1985-1987).

Morgoth are one of the earliest German death metal acts and their 1989 "Resurrection Absurd" EP is one of the first German death metal releases, and although they were only a death metal band for a relatively short period in time before they started experimenting with other music styles, they are widely considered a seminal German death metal act (along with artists like Atrocity and Fleshcrawl).

Stylistically the material on "Pits of Utumno" isn´t pure death metal though, but more a brutal and aggressive thrash metal style with some death metal elements. Lead vocalist/bassist Marc Grewe had not yet developed a growling vocal style, and instead performs a gnarly and raw snarling death/thrash rabid dog vocal style. If he hadn´t changed his vocal style on subsequent releases, he could actually have been a great death/thrash vocalist, because he sounds really great here.

Only two of the six tracks from the 22:10 minutes long demo would appear on subsequent Morgoth releases. "Eternal Sanctity" and "Pits of Utumno" would be re-recorded and included on Morgoth´s second EP release "The Eternal Fall" from May 1990. The remaining tracks are exclusive to this demo. It´s not that the two tracks Morgoth chose to re-record are any less thrashy than the other tracks on the demo, but of course they sound less thrashy in their re-recorded versions with Marc Grewe growling on them instead of performing the rabid dog snarls he does here.

It´s obvious that Morgoth were already a well playing band and that they also understood how to compose an effectful song, and it´s therefore no wonder that they got signed pretty fast by Century Media Records for the release of "Resurrection Absurd" (released in November 1989). A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.