Welcome metalheads to the first album review of 2023. I'm Xander and today we are talking about the brand new album from German funeral doom metal band Ahab titled The Coral Tombs which was released on January 13th via Napalm Records.

The first single for this album was "Colossus of the Liquid Graves". Napalm Records uploaded that claymation music video that gives us a motion picture glance of the album cover. The song features its familiar clean singing heard in previous records and it continues to be refreshing especially since the band's 8 year hiatus since 2015's The Boats of Glen Carrig. The main guitar riff provides us with an earworm of a winding hook. This song also brilliantly showcases the vocal talent of Sir. Daniel Droste. His slow monstrous bellows complement the atmosphere of this incredibly haunting soundtrack.

The first song on the album "Prof. Arronax' Descent Into Vast Oceans" begins with a bombastic crescendo of fast, heavy and aggressive death metal only to slow down drastically into the dragging funeral doom that we all know and love. But this song has another surprise up its sleeve. The song features the German black metal band Ultha although it's not exactly clear on when they show up. If Amazon music hadn't have told me that, I would have never known and thought that it was all just Ahab. Either way, I enjoyed the song regardless.

The day this album was released, the band put out their second music video titled "Mobilis In Mobili". Beginning with earth rumbling vocal delivery but during the halfway mark the sound leads into a sudden tempo change as guitarist Chris Hector gives us some soft string picking while the rest of the band comes to a screeching halt. Daniel eventually adds to Chris' picking with some quiet pitch harmonics before the drums and bass returns to pick up where they left off. This time, Daniel and drummer Cornelius Althammer both beginning their chanting style of cleans. This is a not so surprisingly great mix with the slow death metal guitar chugging slams. It works so well as the last breakdown of the song which hits us hard with the harsh vocals triumphantly concluding the track.

Next we have the song "The Sea As A Desert" which has a very bizarre opening. It's difficult to describe the tuning of the guitar aside from the fact that it sounds mysterious. But it is here where I must address my first and only critique with this album. There are a lot of times throughout this record where it feels like the clean singing tends to slightly overstay it's welcome. These types of baritone operatic singing voices are great for the depressing vibe but at the same time it is only good in moderation. Unfortunately this song in particular falls flat because the majority of the song is clean singing. However, the album quickly redeems itself with the following album title track "A Coral Tomb". Easily my favorite song on this record. It would fit like a glove on this album with its slow and simple riff and 50 BPM drum speed along with the occasional crash cymbal. It's a snare and kick drum pattern that can be played on the minimalist if kits but is still quite effective.

"Aegri Somnia" treats us to an acoustic guitar sound in the most dark and gloomy way possible. It takes a while for the creature-esq harsh vocals to kick in but when they do, you feel that impact reverberate through your bones. Speaking of vibrations, there are definitely some audible bass lines played by Stephan Wandernoth. The final track "The Maelstrom" features the band Esoteric. Both guest features on this album don't really make their presence that noticeable all though I could tell when they showed up for the background vocals toward this song's dreary end.

So how would I rate this album? I would tell you that it is almost a masterpiece. I say almost because of my minor issues with the amount of clean singing knocks this one down a couple points. I give Ahab - The Coral Tombs a solid and well deserved 9 out of 10.

The Great Metal Debate

Metal Debate Album Review - The Coral Tombs

Ep. 81 - Jaakko Mäntymaa (Marianas Rest).  In this episode I talk with Marianas Rest vocalist Jaakko Mäntymaa.  Marianas Rest are from Kotka, Finland and formed in 2013.  They play a melancholic style of death/doom metal.  If you heard of bands like Swallow The Sun, Insomnium, or Omnium Gatherum you'll definitely dig Marianas Rest.  Marianas Rest just released a new album entitled “Auer” via Napalm Records on March 24th.  This is a great album and I highly recommend it if you like somber, melancholic doom metal.  We talk about the formation of the band, their new album, and a bunch of Finnish bands Jaakko recommends.   I hope everyone enjoys this episode.  Ahéhee' / Thank you.
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Opening song is by Tribal Kills "Fire In The Sky" (check them out):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adVxRpSaqgI
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Band Links:
http://marianasrest.com/
https://label.napalmrecords.com/marianas-rest
https://www.facebook.com/marianasrestofficial
https://www.instagram.com/marianasrestofficial/
https://open.spotify.com/artist/0k4zMzhcTcF2wQcbOMVZxD
https://music.apple.com/artist/marianas-rest/912710312
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdcCG_mNj82WjjExpiJEwVA
https://marianasrest.bandcamp.com/album/auer

Ep 81 - Marianas Rest

Welcome back to another Metal Debate album review.  Today we’re reviewing the new album “Dreams Of Lands Unseen” by Ignea. Ignea are a symphonic metal band from Ukraine. The material fits in the general mold of symphonic metal, but Ignea provide enough musical twists and tangents to keep things fresh and not be too derivative.
 
Following the intro instrumental “Téoura”, Dreams of Lands Unseen opens with “Dunes.” The vocal and instrumental melodies are impressive, pulling the listener along and demanding attention. A good mix of power and softness in both the vocals and instrumental execution. We also get some snippets of Ukrainian language included among the otherwise English lyrics, to nice effect.

The next song “Camera Obscura” has a synthy intro, will heavy riffs kicking in thereafter relegating the synths to a backing role.  Singer Helle Bodenova’s voice is soft and flows well prior to the issuance of her growls. We already begin to see here hints of a moderately progressive approach with Ignea’s music.  The majority of tracks on the album begin with a traditional verse, chorus, verse, chorus, sequence, but then branch out as the songs continue with a variety of conclusions including some abrupt endings.
 
Track 4 - Далекі Обрії (Daleki Obriyi)- reverses the approach of “Camera Obscura” with an initial motor of crunching guitars segueing into keys.  We get harsh vox on the verses, and cleans on the choruses, and there’s a satisfying if brief keyboard lead break.  
 
“To No One I Know” features some tasteful string instrument sounds – whether real or synth I’m not sure.  But it brings to mind that Ignea is not the brand of symphonic metal that relies on overwhelming backing orchestrations as with acts such as Xandria or Visions Of Atlantis. Their approach is more measured.  “Incurable Disease” has a lot of the old Delain feel to it. It’s very cinematic sounding, conjuring spectral images of light and darkeness narrated by beautiful vocals and a lot of ambient backing sound.
 
Next comes “Nomad’s Luck” which is one of my top songs on the record. Immaculately crafted, this track ‘works’ from beginning to end. I really applaud Ignea for what seems to be the amount of thought they put into these songs. Helle’s voice is excellent here, highlighted by some slow but powerful singing toward the song’s incredible crescendo ending.
 
“The Golden Shell” has a very east Asian feel to it, especially in the intro.  This one casts aside the aggression for passion, eschewing harsh vocals entirely in favor or a soft voice and slow, sustained tempo throughout.  This is a good song, just not one of my favs mostly because I don’t think it highlights what this band does best.
 
The pentultimate track “Opiumist” is also the longest on the album clocking in at over 7 minutes.  It’s another of my favorites – just the overall pacing and structure are great. “Opiumist” incorporates even more oriental flavoring in it’s execution, as well as an overall trippy feel from. It gets really trippy about 4 ½ minutes in, than following that interlude goes into about two minutes of straightforward death metal.  Kind of a weird song, to be honest, but for me it definitely works.
 
The album concludes with “Zénith.” This track didn’t work for me - the bouncey main guitar riff I just fine so cringeworthy as to be unlistenable. Give it a chance yourself and perhaps your aesthetic sensibilities will find it more acceptable than I do.

What I have for this album is mostly praise. Dreams Of Lands Unseen is a solid metal album that I would recommend highly to anyone. I’m giving it a nine out of ten – and that’s something given I really didn’t like one of the tracks. Fans of symphonic metal, melodic death metal, and melodic metal generally should check out Ignea – you won’t be disappointed.

Metal Debate Album Review - Dreams Of Lands Unseen (Ignea)

Welcome back to The Great Metal Debate podcast. Today we are talking the new album from the Scottish power metal band Gloryhammer - Return To The Kingdom of Fife.
Gloryhammer has created their own lore within their fantasy/science fiction themed lyrics. The basic premise is that there is a ruler of a type of people called the hootsman and his name is Angus McFife, the protector of an ancient powerful warhammer he must wield to slay goblins who are under the command of Lord Zargothrax. Oh yeah, and there are a lot of unicorns too. Gloryhammer is the only metal band who can confidently sing about unicorns and have it still be cool.
First, we must address the elephant in the room. Thomas Winkler was the lead singer for the first 3 albums of this band's discography using the name Angus McFife XIII. But in the final 12-minute song on the previous album "In The Fires Of Ancient Cosmic Destiny" Angus McFife and Lord Zargothrax killed each other while battling in a fight to the death at the top of an erupting volcano. Now we have a new singer named Sozos Michael who is using the name Angus McFife V.
"Incoming Transmission" might be a predictable and skipable intro but the first song "Holy Flaming Hammer of Unholy Cosmic Frost" is a triumphant start to a kick ass record. The new voice might be jarring at first to people who are used to the previous 3 albums but Sozos absolutely owns that microphone despite having major shoes to fill and the overall sound is still undeniably Gloryhammer at their finest.
"Imperium Dundaxia" is heavy with the grinding low guitar fret work. The drumming is also noticably crisp is the mixing but keyboardist who plays the character of Lord Zargothrax shows off his maniacal villainous vocals. He's like a natural born voice actor for a Saturday morning cartoon but the synth work really enhances it.
And now for one of my favorite songs on this blazing new album goes to the band's latest single "Wasteland Warrior Hoots Patrol". This song is a sing-along bop that will get stuck in your head for days! Even the opening tune will remind you of the corniest 80s fantasy movie soundtrack. Keep in mind that I personally am a big nerd so I mean that as a compliment. It's all the better when enhanced by Sozos kicking things off with an epic power metal belt.
Next up we have the song "Brotherhood Of Crail". I love the folky singing style as it brings a very medieval element to the table. "Fife Eternal" continues this trend but in an alternate way especially since the electronic moments help it stand out even further.
"Sword Lord of the Goblin Horde" sounds like the type of song that an ordinary person who isn't a Metalhead would get stuck in their head. I can just imagine a regular coworker or friend just randomly mumbling the course to the song to themselves. It is very radio friendly in that way.
The next track titled "Vorpal Laserblaster of Pittenweem" is a perfect example of what you should show your peers who have never listened to a power metal song before.
"Keeper of the Celestial Flame of Abernethy" was the first single released for this album and it was presented to us in the form of an animated lyrical video. It's yet another very catchy bop that will have you singing along even if the only part you're singing is ..."He's a sorcerer, nefarious"
The epic conclusion that has an almost equally long song title "Maleficus Geminus (Colossus Matrix 38B - Ultimate Invocation of the Binary Thaumaturge)" It's way too much to unpack here but definitely worth the listen if and when you have the time to devote to it. One part that stood out was at the exact 5-minute mark because it’s a callback to the song "Gloryhammer" from the last album. Instead of the double voice chanting the words "Glory Hammer" he instead says "Double Wizards".
But how would I rate this album?  every member of the band is as good as they have ever been and Sozos really steals the show. Return To The Kingdom Of Fife deserves a 9/10.

Metal Debate Album Review - Return To the Kingdom Of Fife (Gloryhammer)

Sevendust Frontman Lajon Witherspoon talks about how the Atlanta band reconnected to record ‘Truth Killer’ (Napalm Records), the most diverse album of their careers.

Full article: https://v13.net/2023/08/sevendust-lajon-witherspoon-interview-cover-story-truth-killer/

Cover Story: Sevendust’s Lajon Witherspoon

Welcome metal fans to The Great Metal Debate, its Xander bringing you all a new album review. Today, we will be discussing the brand new album from Canadian power metallers Unleash The Archers and their 6th full-length studio album Phantoma. I made a prediction that the next record would be their worst. Turns out that nearly 4 years later in 2024, I was correct. This new Phantoma album ... Sucks!

Let's talk about the guitar work. Andrew Kingsley and Grant Truesdell are usually guitar gods! To me, they have had some of the best riffs, melodies, harmonics and solos. But this album in particular makes it sound like they weren't even trying. Every song has a generic sounding main riff that is bland and falls flat. Its almost like they were just trying to make mediocre background music just so Brittany had something to sing to. The only song on this album that actually had a solo that stood out to me was in their first single "Green & Glass". Everything else is boring. Compare the best solo on Phantoma with literally any other solo from any other album and the former will blow it out of the water. Want an incredible guitar solo from Unleash The Archers? Check out the album title track on Apex.

While were on the subject of "Green & Glass", lets address the controversy. Remember last year when Cattle Decapitation put out an AI generated music video for "Scourge of the Offspring" and nobody cared? But now that Unleash The Archers decides to get permission from an actual artist that they paid to draw the band members but then only use AI for movement animations, they're the ones who get shit on. I will defend Unleash The Archers for this because they're taking all the heat for using AI correctly. The internet is attacking the wrong people here.

Another thing to poke fun at is the album cover. When Unleash The Archers shared a close up picture of the new album art before showing the whole picture, we got an image that looked promising. Two people next to a tree which gave off the Adam & Eve vibes. But when you zoom way out, it's small compared to the futuristic city behind it. The city scape depiction is atrocious. Yeah, yeah, don't judge a book by its cover but damn. This could've been so much better.

Moving onto the singing. Brittany is an amazing singer who can really belt out those high notes. But it truly feels like she's not even trying on this album at all. One day before the album dropped, the band released another single for a song called "Blood Empress" and I only made it a minute and 30 seconds before I turned it off. Like seriously Brittany? You have so much natural vocal range but you felt like you need electronic enhancers? It sounded almost as if she was using auto-tune.

I forced myself to listen to the rest of the album and nothing truly stood out about it. Maybe in 10 years from now after they release 2 more lame albums they'll finally want to do that thing that a lot of other bands try to do. They'll try to re-catch lightening in a bottle by "returning to their roots" and old fans like me will get excited for a song that sounds ... Almost as good as their early days as a band.

Will this album later grow on me too? I don't know. But what I do know, is that it hurts my heart to give this such a scathing review. As it currently stands, I'm only going to rate this album a 4/10. Its not the worst thing out there in the world of metal. I'd still rather listen to this than the new Six Feet Under album that was released on the same day.

Maybe with the continued support of the band, they could potentially redeem themselves within the next few years. As usual, their music is available on all streaming platforms and the majority of their merchandise can be purchased either through indiemerch.com or at their live shows. They will be on tour opening for Powerwolf this September but get your tickets now. The Atlanta show has already sold out.

Metal Debate Album Review - Phantoma (Unleash The Archers)

Welcome back metal heads to another album review here on The Great Metal Debate podcast. Today we will be talking about a German black metal band called Eisregen with their ... Holy dog shit! This is the band's 16th full-length studio album? What the fuck? How come I'm just now finding out about these guys. Ohhhh, that's why. Its because its their first album to be released through Napalm Records. Gotcha.

But damn, these guys have been busier than a one armed machinist. According to Metal-Archives, they have consistently released new music roughly once or per year or once every two years since 1995. In 1998 they released both their debut AND their second album.

I have heard from Gomthog that these guys are controversial in their home country. I'm not sure what for but their band bio says that they have been banned in their own country and aren't allowed to play certain songs live. People under the age of 16 aren't allowed to buy their physical media from entertainment stores.

For now, lets focus on their newest full-length titled Abart. Not to do a completely half-assed job on this review but I've decided that I'm not going to try to pronounce any of the song titles or names of the band members. Sure, it might be lazy but I received the press release for this album a full week in advance and here we are a few days past the release date of August 16th, so I kinda need to hurry the fuck up.

My cause for the delay? I was busy with another review. A review that will never see the light of day. I was gonna do one for the new Mushroomhead album before I realized that it was just me rambling on about my personal nostalgia for the old material only to give Call The Devil a 5/10. There, you got two reviews in one! Looks like y'all got more than you bargained for.

Back to Eisregen, the only reason I got the promo from something on Napalm Records is because the distribution for the American copies were being released through Massacre Records. Lucky me.

I have another extremely hot take so you might want to get your oven mitts on. Many people would call me a poser for being a Rammstein fanboy but ... I love the industrial metal phase that the black metal band Samael went through during the mid-2000s. I think it's Samael's best work. I know, I know, gather your torches and pitchforks to run me out of the metal community. I don't give a shit.

What does that have to do with Eisregen? Eisregen sounds like Samael's 2004 masterpiece Reign of Light album raw dogged it with Rammstein's 2003 masterpiece Sehnsucht. Eisregen has that harsh flavor of German dialect. The band's native language spoils the listener with the continuous rolling tongue accent.

Okay, I lied. I'll pronounce this one for you. The opening track "Am Abgrund" had a music video that was dropped a few weeks ago and its how I discovered this band in the first place. I thoroughly enjoyed the combination of the sandpaper voice over the calming piano keys.

The entire album mixes the traditional black metal style with softer moments. The fusion of polar opposites give off the perfect blend of a musical Yen and Yang. That's what the overall structure provides, a balance that is easy listening. At least in my personal opinion, I find this 1 hour and 2 minute composition to be flawless. I have zero critiques which means only one thing.

Eisregen - Abart is the only album I have reviewed all year that I award a 10/10 rating. It's fucking fantastic! What this band lacks in melodic guitar riffs, it more than compensates with plenty of symphonies.

Eisregen's music is not on bandcamp and I have no clue where to obtain physical merch but their music is on all other streaming platforms. If you liked this review, be sure to like and subscribe to our platforms and share our links everywhere.

Metal Debate Album Review - Abart (Eisregen)

Nervosa frontperson Prika Amaral joins the show in this interview recorded in Nashville prior to the band's performance at The End!

Excerpts from the Nervosa track "Behind The Wall" (Jailbreak, 2023) used with permission from the artist.

Metal Debate Interview - Prika Amaral of Nervosa (09-22-2024)

High-fidelity content by music, entertainment and pop culture lovers. Ex-PureGrainAudio. Vita. Veritas. Vox Populi. C’est La V13.

My name is Kelvin (Navajo/Diné).  I started a metal music podcast. I interview bands and talk about music I like. I like to interview Native American metal bands, hence the name Rez Metal Podcast. Follow me on FB, Instagram, Spotify, or ITunes.
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Podcast where Gomthog and co-hosts engage in lively debates on heavy metal music as well as interviewing artists and reviewing albums.  Occasional explicit language.

New tracks tagged #Napalm Records