Brock’s 2 Cents – MARCH 2021

March hits that one year mark of this full blown Covid-19 bullsh*t here in the states and it seems its going to linger on for a little bit more. *UGH* Hopefully things get back to normal for concerts by late summer or fall. Only good thing is new releases are coming out left and right, as I expected this year to be busy. Here are my reviews of recently released albums that I think you should know about. Forget about these in-depth reviews, I’m bringing you quick reviews on multiple releases to help you guide your way through the METAL world today!
BASICALLY THIS IS JUST MY OPINION, LIKE IT OR NOT…
Ratings: [0(sucks) to 5(awesome)]
{Format: Band – album title = rating |label |style of metal. review}


THE CROWN Royal Destroyer = 3.75/5 |Metal Blade |Death/Thrash Metal
I first discovered the band when they released the Deathrace King album which blew my mind and IMO, its their best album. In 2018, they released Cobra Speed Venom which was incredible and solidified 2nd place of their best albums. Their debut album, under the name CROWN OF THORNS, The Burning is third best. Now, in 2021, Royal Destroyer is taking 4th place. Cobra Speed Venom set the bar so high, I knew this album wasn’t going to be as good but man, they did their damnest to try. This album has all the hate and fury that you’d expect them to bring but surprising there’s a few songs that are more melodic and slower paced on this album. One or two of those could’ve been cut, kind of brought down the the album. Overall, THE CROWN is still firing on all cylinders and show no signs of letting up the reins. 11 tracks, 5 are killer and 4 are OK.
ffo: DEFLESHED, DEATHCHAIN, LEGION OF THE DAMNED, AT THE GATES, DESULTORY

EVERGREYEscape of the Phoenix = 4.25/5 |AFM |Progressive Metal
EVERGREY, in my opinion, has been one of the better progressive metal bands in the genre but they finally hit their epic mark with the 2014 album Hymns For the Broken and followed that up with The Storm Within in 2016 which were my favorite albums. The Atlantic, though, was a let down and I was saddened that EVERGREY probably lost their way but oh no! Escape of the Phoenix, their 12th album, brings EVERGREY back to the front of the genre! This album is incredible and follows up in the same vein as Hymns For the Broken and The Storm Within. This is another perfect mix of melodic heaviness and emotional display of well crafted songs. This whole album has a great balance from start to finish and never gets boring. Escape of the Phoenix is probably my favorite album from EVERGREY now. This will be in my top albums list for 2021! 11 tracks, 5 are killer and 5 are good.
ffo: FATES WARNING, SYMPHONY X, MORGANA LEFAY, DREAM THEATER, ANGEL DUST

ABOMINABLE PUTRIDITY Parasitic Metamorphosis Manifestation = 3.5/5 |Inherited Suffering |Brutal Slam Death Metal
Somebody pinch me! It finally happened, a new album from ABOMINABLE PUTRIDITY. After tons of line-ups changes, 9 years later we finally get the third album, Parasitic Metamorphosis Manifestation. With Alexander Kubiashvili being the only original members left handling all the instruments and having the throat sickness of Angel Ochoa handling the vocals this new album has had fans foaming at mouth waiting for this! You’d think this would be a shoe in for top brutal Slam DM album of the year but with two strong releases from INSECT INSIDE and KORPSE (who holds the title for this year so far) there’s some serious competition. I loved the debut album In the End of Human Existence and the sophomore album The Anomalies of Artificial Origin is their best. Parasitic Metamorphosis Manifestation is a very strong effort that is very quick with it only being under 25 minutes long and is probably their 2nd best album, IMO. Honestly It expected better but I’m very pleased that we at least got a new album out finally. A must have for brutal slam fans! 9 tracks, 4 are killer and 3 are good.
ffo: DEVOURMENT, DERACINATED, CEPHALOTRIPSY, PATHOLOGY, ANALEPSY, KRAANIUM, KORPSE

ENFORCEDKill Grid = 3/5 |Century Media |Thrash/Crossover
Living an hour south of Richmond, VA I always like to check out what’s coming from the scene and ENFORCED is one of the newer bands. Their first album At the Walls was so-so in my book so I was amazed they got signed to a major metal label. After spinning Kill Grid a few times I understand why. Now, Kill Grid is not recreating the wheel when it comes to crossover metal but they’ve solidified their identity and crafted an album that’s a force to reckoned with. Kill Grid mixes the best elements of the genre and has that back in the day vibes that adds an accessibility to these songs which will gather up tons of fans. I can definitely see a crowd getting whipped in a frenzy at their live shows with this release. Kill Grid is an old school spirit in a modern packaging that is just a good head-banging listening experience! 9 tracks, 3 are killer and 4 are good. Check out our interview with them here.
ffo: POWER TRIP, RINGWORM, ALL OUT WAR, D.R.I., HIGH COMMAND, SLAYER

CREEPING FEARHategod Triumph = 3.25/5 |Dolorem |Death Metal
The sophomore album, Hategod Triumph, from French band CREEPING FEAR brings their brand of DM with a touch of BM. CREEPING FEAR, to me, sounds like a Florida DM band playing blackened DM. Their debut album Onward to Apocalypse was an OK debut but Hategod Triumph just destroys it and shows the progression of CREEPING FEAR becoming a force in the genre! These new tracks just pound your ear drums into a bloody pulp. The song writing has vastly improved and this death march will have you head-banging throughout! A clean, solid production and mastering done by Dan Swano so you know it’s gonna sound top notch. DM heads take heed, this is a band you need to check out! 8 tracks, 4 are killer and 3 are good!
ffo: MALEVOLENT CREATION, [early] HATE ETERNAL, AMON, BELPHEGOR, NECROPHOBIC

WOLFHEARTSkull Soldier = 3/5 |Napalm |Melodic Death Metal
For at least the past decade when it comes to the Euro Melodic DM sound, bands out of Finland have been dominating the genre and WOLFHEART is right there running with the pack lead. About a year after their last album Wolves of Karelia (which was damn good) Tuomas Saukkonen and crew is back with a new EP featuring 2 new songs, an acoustic version and a live track. The 2 new tracks are what you’d expect from WOLFHEART with the first track is just straight forward and track 2 being more of the evolution of WOLFHEART that shows they are not done by a long shot. The acoustic track is good and also is the live track. Fans of Euro Melodic DM you should be listening to this band period! 4 tracks, 1 is killer and 2 is good. Also check out our interview with WOLFHEART click here.
ffo: INSOMNIUM, DAWN OF SOLACE, MORS PRINCIPIUM EST, DAWN OF DISEASE, KALMAH

KORPSEInsufferable Violence = 4.25/5 |Unique Leader |Slam Brutal Death
The Slam DM juggernaut from the Netherlands has returned with their 3rd album Insufferable Violence and what a perfect description for this album. This is slamming punishment in sheer blissful audio debauchery. When it comes to modern slam bands KORPSE is right up front leading the pack! The grooves, breakdowns, and brutality will have you moshing in your room destroying all your stuff. You better stretch your neck before listen to this or you’ll be cramped up the next day. Insufferable Violence is their best album! Yet again, I keep saying, if it’s DM coming out of Netherlands or Italy, give it a listen because there’s a high percentage it’s going to damn good! A must have for slam fans and this might be the top slam album of 2021. It’ll definitely be in my top albums list! 10 tracks, 2 instrumentals, 4 are killer and 3 are good.
ffo: KRAANIUM, ANALEPSY, VULVECTOMY, EXTERMINATION DISMEMBERMENT, CRANIOTOMY

KJELD Ofstan = 4/5 |Heidens Hart |Black Metal
About a decade ago looking for new BM I took a chance on their debut EP De Tiid Haldt Gjin Skoft and was blown away by the natural sounding OSBM feel it had. Their debut album, Skym, 5 years later was a good follow up. Now, their sophomore album, Ofstan, is f’n incredible. Following a lineage of BM bands from Germany & Netherlands interested in exploring ideas of homeland and identity, they define themselves as ‘Frisian Black Metal’. Ofstan pushes forward from Skym including a bit more melodic vibes but also more haunting/darker atmosphere into this aggressive BM release. This has all the feel of the second wave of BM with a modern touch. I’ve been preaching along time that there’s something in the water when it comes to the Netherlands and Italy, whatever the band is, give it a listen becomes there’s a high percentage it’s gonna be worth it! KJELD is one of them, this is elite BM! BM fans take heed! This will be in my top 10 of BM albums and possibly top albums of 2021! 9 tracks, 4 are killer and 4 are good.
ffo: KVIST, LUGUBRE, [early] BORKNAGAR, SATYRICON, WINDIR

THE SCALAR PROCESSCoagulative Matter = 3/5 |Transcending Obscurity |Progressive/Technical Death Metal
I saw somewhere that they were described as flamboyant in the Tech DM genre and I’m totally borrowing that. This is flamboyant tech DM! Just pack everything that is the genre from DEATH, CYNIC to BEYOND CREATION, OBSCURA, to ARCHSPIRE and RINGS OF SATURN into a blend and mix, that is THE SCALAR PROCESS but expression to the max. The progressiveness of these songs takes you on a journey into the blasting gusto of chaos to changing atmospheric pathways into exploring different patterns of riffs to fit all this technical madness together. Not many bands can pull this off but THE SCALAR PROCESS executes with clarity without losing momentum. At some points it can be a little overwhelming but this is a release that will take multiple spins to fully grasp. Coagulative Matter is definitely a ‘grows on you’ type of album because of the complex technicality. Now I have to see this band live to see if they could pull this off. A promising young band that offers something different in the tech DM genre. Fans need to check this out now! 11 tracks, 3 instrumentals, 3 are killer and 4 are good.
FFO: CYNIC, ARCHSPIRE, THE FACELESS, GOROD, OBSCURA, DECREPIT BIRTH

TWITCH OF THE DEATH NERVEBeset By False Prophets = 3.25/5 |Comatose |Brutal Death Metal
TWITCH OF THE DEATH NERVE is one of the best brutal DM bands that has came out this century! Their first two albums were both in my top albums lists of the year they were released. So I’m super excited for this new EP featuring 4 new songs and an entire live set they recorded last year. Beset By False Prophets just pummel your face into mush with absurdly head-banging technical brutality. They did add a new element that pops up a few times of slowing things down a notch to induce a sludgy heaviness until the chaos breaks wide out again! Beset By False Prophets shows that they’re in the forefront of this genre and you should own everything they have out! 14 tracks, last 10 are the live set, 2 are killer and 2 are good!
ffo: DEFEATED SANITY, CONDEMNED, LITURGY, SEPTYCAL GORGE, INVERACITY

INSECT INSIDEThe First Shining of New Genus = 4/5 |Gore House |Slam Brutal Death Metal
The First Shining of New Genus is the debut album by Russian newcomers, INSECT INSIDE. The trio features current members of TRAUMATOMY and DISFIGUREMENT OF FLESH contributing to their version of Slam Brutal DM. This is packed full of tech riffs, slamming grooves and blasting brutality to place themselves near the top of this genre. Basically, this album is f’n tough! Recently the world of brutal slam DM has been very boring/stale, cookie-cutter, repetitive, and focused on breakdowns rather than groove (which is what made the genre). INSECT INSIDE gives a blast of fresh air to this over populated genre. The song writing is great with the appropriate blend of slams to breakdowns to grooves to blasting brutality. The production is thick and heavy adding to pummeling this album delivers! This is a release that gives me hope that the slam genre still has greatness that can be bestowed upon us mortals! This is a must for fans of the slam genre! This will probably be in the top list of 2021! 10 tracks, 1 intro, 5 are killer and 3 are good.
ffo: ABOMINABLE PUTRIDITY, ANALEPSY, TRAUMATOMY, PYREXIA, KRAANIUM

OMINOUS RUIN Amidst Voices That Echo In Stone = 2.25/5 |Willowtip |Technical Brutal Death Metal
Saw some hype about this debut album so first I had to check out their debut EP, Exiled, which was good and got me excited for this new album. This is good modern tech DM with a touch of BM. This is exactly something you’d expect to hear off Willowtip or Unique Leader labels. Amidst Voices That Echo In Stone starts off blasting with energy but then get a little lost in the technicality. You can shred and be over the top technical but you have to some soul to the madness you create. OMINOUS RUIN has put together an impressive debut but let alone doesn’t really blow your socks off if you’re a huge fan of the genre. OMINOUS RUIN has all the elements to deliver some greatness so I’m expecting a lot from their next album. Fans of the modern tech DM genre need to check this out! 9 tracks, 2 are killer and 4 are OK.
ffo: INANIMATE EXISTENCE, PSYCROPTIC, ODIOUS MORTEM, NECROPHAGIST, SPAWN OF POSSESSION

BURIEDOculus Rot = 2.25/5 |Brutal Mind |Death Metal
So, on their bandcamp page they state: ‘PYAEMIA‘ HAS BEEN ‘BURIED’, LONG LIVE BURIED! This a new band from the Netherlands, featuring members of PYAEMIA and ARSEBREED bringing their brand of modern DM packed with tons of grooves by mixing DM from early 00’s with a bit of tech. BUT, this is not a PYAEMIA continuation! This doesn’t even sound like PYAEMIA, it’s members bringing some modern groove oriented DM. Oculus Rot is a solid debut filled with chaotic riffs, two tons of grooves and enough blasting to top off this album. It’s not recreating the wheel (as I like to use this statement a lot) but enough good head-banging song writing to please the DM fan! Definitely worth checking out if DM groove is your thing! 9 tracks, 2 are killer and 5 are good.
ffo: DAWN OF DEMISE, DECAPITATED, REVOCATION, SOREPTION, SUFFOCATION

HAL Von Nacht Und Mahr = 3.25/5 |Unsigned |Black Metal
One man band, formally named DRAUG is a continuation of what his previous band was. Since the name change solo member Vandergrift has taken the band to new heights. The sound and song writing is more focused and you can hear the natural development as this is his best album to date! The production is organic and offers a raw vibe to the album. Von Nacht Und Mahr has enough frigid blasting, melodic and aggressive head-banging riffs along with good song writing to put this BM album in need of attention from fans! Even though this band is from Germany, fans of Scandinavian BM should check this album out! 6 tracks, 3 are killer and 2 are OK.
ffo: DRAUG, SATYRICON, TAAKE, KHOLD, DIABOLICAL, EISREGEN

VISCERAL UPROOTING50.39 Square-Kilometer Mass Grave = 2.75/5 |Vile Tapes |Brutal Death Metal
One man band from France, Anthony Guern (DYSMORFECTOMY, CRYOGENICAL EXCISION) brings his personal touch on semi-Slam Brutal DM. This debut album is way better than the debut EP Forest of Guts. 50​.​39​-​Square​-​Kilometer Mass Grave is a crushing debut of breakdown heavy slam DM! A very solid album fans of modern slam DM definitely need to check this out! Only gripe is this is another slam band focused on breakdowns and not enough groove for my taste, but there still enough here to get me in the pit! 8 tracks, 3 are killer and 4 are OK.
ffo: EXTERMINATION DISMEMBERMENT, TRAUMATOMY, GOREVENT, PUTRID PILE

MISOTHEIST For The Glory of Your Redeemer = 2.25/5 |Terratur |Black Metal
Little is known about Norway’s MISOTHEIST lineup but their self-titled full length was very murky and dark with three very lengthy tracks for a solid debut. 3 years later, their sophomore album, yet again only 3 lengthy tracks, offers even more murkier and dense material with added elements of atmosphere to give the new tracks something more to grasp hold of. Sharing a lot of elements in the genre that you’d hear of French or Icelandic BM bands, For The Glory of Your Redeemer offers a low fi and raw production to this frightening yet interesting 16-minute hellscape journey. I did enjoy this but personally would love some more speed and fury to this mid-paced eeriness. Worth checking out. 3 tracks, 2 are killer and 1 is OK.
ffo: DEATHSPELL OMEGA, AOSOTH, SVARTIDAUDI, DODECAHEDRON

RASPATORYPathopsychology = 2.25/5 |Coyote |Death Metal
A new DM band from Belarus, displaying a modern DM sound with a theme dedicated to the latest events and actions in Belarus. A decent debut that mixes OSDM with a touch of modern sound. Pathopsychology is not recreating the wheel but has some good song writing. A mid-paced type album that will have you head-banging throughout. If like mid-paced DM, give this a listen. 9 tracks, 1 cover, 3 are killer and 3 are OK.
ffo: BENEDICTION, DECAPITATED, CANNIBAL CORPSE, SIX FEET UNDER

BORN OF THORNS – The End-Time Continuum = 1.5/5 |Unsigned |Symphonic Black Metal
Formed back in ’97 and releasing a few demos and EPs till 2011, finally their debut album, The End-Time Continuum was released on New Years Day. The combination of symphonic BM with Euro Melodic DM influences offers up something that’s not experimental different but displays some decent head-banging song writing in a macabre atmosphere. About half the album is what I’d like to hear from the band and the other half doesn’t hold my interest. The End-Time Continuum is a decent effort but a few years too late, if this came out a decade or so ago this might of got a higher rank. Even with some catchy song writing this album just has that ‘I’ve heard this before’ vibe. If you’re a big fan of the symphonic BM genre give it a listen. 7 tracks, 2 are killer and 3 are OK.
ffo: [early] DIMMU BORGIR, …AND OCEANS, CARACH ANGREN, MORS PRINCIPIUM EST

DEMON KINGThe Final Tyranny = 1/5 |The Artisan Era |Blackened Technical Death Metal
A new band featuring members of INFERI, A LOATHING REQUIEM and ENFOLD DARKNESS delivers their debut EP that sounds like CRADLE OF FILTH playing tech DM. Apparently this is a comeback project of original ENFOLD DARKNESS guitarist Matt Brown. Now, I’m not a big fan of bands listed above but I do think those fans will really enjoy this EP. There’s enough tech DM to keep my interest but also enough bad semi-blackened DM to lose it. The Final Tyranny is not bad but just not my cup o’ tea and I’d rarely listen to this. If the bands in the ffo section are what you listen to then check out this band. 4 tracks, 1 is killer and 2 are good.
ffo: INFERI, ENFOLD DARKNESS, CRADLE OF FILTH, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER

Abominable PutridityBorn of ThornsBrock's 2 CentsBuriedCreeping FearDemon KingEnforcedEvergreyHalInsect InsideKjeldKorpseMisotheistOminous RuinRaspatoryThe CrownThe Scalar ProcessTwitch of the death nerveVisceral UprootingWolfheart
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