Mike SOS has another bunch of reviews for your reading pleasure.


KAYSER
FRAME THE WORLD...HANG IT ON THE WALL
SPV
Featuring ex-members of The Mushroom River Band, Spiritual Beggars, and Defaced, this Swedish supergroup of sorts known as Kayser unleash their sophomore effort, an eclectic 12-track array of metal titled FRAME THE WORLD...HANG IT ON THE WALL. Everything from The Haunted's progressive thrash to Symphony X's technical prowess can be found on tracks like "A Note from Your Wicked Son" and "Lost in the Mud", while the undeniable crunchy guitars are bound overwhelm your senses on cuts like "Cheap Glue" and "The Cake". While Kayser's blistering bark and metallic bite rarely reach the far beyond driven phase, there are loads of intriguing solos, a slew of husky and heavy vocals, and a plethora of interesting arrangements that adorn this disc to keep the smile on the open minded thrasher's mug. www.spvusa.com -Mike SOS

SUFFOCATE FASTER
DON'T KILL THE MESSENGER
1981
Angry and abrasive metallic hardcore comes bursting through your speakers courtesy of Suffocate Faster. This quartet's 11-track endeavor DON'T KILL THE MESSENGER contains a powerful punch yet yields few surprises, especially if you own everything Hatebreed ever did. However, if you're in the market for a serpentine vocal backed up by a malevolent array of chugging guitars with a straight edge appeal, seek this one out. www.1981records.com -Mike SOS

CLOWN ALLEY
CIRCUS OF CHAOS
SOUTHERN LORD
A reissue of this Bay Area outfit's only full length record, CIRCUS OF CHAOS is an old school crossover record that merged blistering thrash a la Violence ("Unplugged") and ambient slow movements way back in 1986. Adorned with bonus material such as interviews and demos and boasting not one, but two ex-bass players from The Melvins, if nothing else, this unearthed release offers a glimpse of the early days of extreme music from the West Coast. While this disc can be hardly be heralded as essential, it does fill in the gaps nicely and compliments your DRI records well enough. www.southernlord.com -Mike SOS

THYRFING
FARSOTSTIDER
CANDLELIGHT
Swedish Viking metal clan Thyrfing lashes out with FARSOSTIDER, a blackened eight-track opus that has as much common with Enslaved as it does Bathory. While the lyrics are sung entirely in Swedish, the main focus here is the band's luxurious use of dynamics, going from majestic metal movements to doom-laden dirges to folk-inspired passages with relative ease and tremendous fluidity. Epically sweeping and undeniably heavy, FARSOSTIDER retains the old school black metal attitude and sound while adding the nuances today's underground metal masters manipulate, creating a sonic masterpiece in the process. www.candlelightrecordsusa.com -Mike SOS

PASSION
THE FIERCE URGENCY OF NOW
GOODFELLOW
The City of Brotherly Love is the hometown of this mighty hardcore quintet known as Passion, whose explosive musical output and imminent album title make for a perfect pair. Just as concerned with packing your cranium with knowledge as they are crushing it into bits, this visceral unit displays the sonic audacity of a band under Kurt Ballou's spell with shards of raw power and sheer aggression providing the wind beneath their wings. Demonstrating hardcore punk at its finest while emanating scathing commentaries and scolding riffs that protrude through a viscous wall of sound, THE FIERCE URGENCY OF NOW combines Zao, Black Flag, and Modern Life is War into a volatile package suitable for including in a Molotov cocktail and throwing through a window. www.goodfellowrecords.com -Mike SOS

SKULLFLOWER
TRIBULATION
CRUCIAL BLAST
Skullflower's latest slab of experimental music takes the high end to new highs with guitar feedback galore on TRIBULATION. Sounding like the Space Shuttle before transmission on the precociously-titled "Lost in the Blackened Gardens of Some Vast Star" before morphing into something that resembles a black metal band playing at a rave on "Black Wind", this nine-track ode to noise maintains a near impenetrable wall of sound throughout that is hypnotic and jagged yet strangely soothing . While good drugs would totally help this disc sound better, a clear mind in a peaceful place will allow TRIBULATION to help you feel better. www.crucialblast.com -Mike SOS

MUSHROOMHEAD
SAVIOR SORROW
MEGAFORCE
Mushroomhead returns with a more dance-able sound on SAVIOR SORROW, which means that Goth strippers everywhere now have one or two more songs to choose from. Other than that, this 12-track disc is a pretty bland, generic, and unbalanced release. However, with tricks up their costumes like the speaker scorching riff from "Tattoo" and the way their poignant Pink Floyd-esque "Embrace the End" finally gives them that Bic lighter send-off their live show craved, this disc does offer a lot of versatility. But when the appeal is mired in leftover Korn and third-rate NIN, the overall effect of songs like "Erase the Doubt" come off sounding like of sanitized industrial-strength nu-metal that the band really had to purge out of themselves. www.megaforcerecords.com -Mike SOS

ANGRA
AURORA CONSURGENS
SPV
Well-rounded power metal with a world music scope sans Viking helmets and light on the fantastic imagery comes courtesy of Brazil's Angra and their latest 10-track release AURORA CONSURGENS. Juxtaposing elements of progressive metal a la Queensryche with the power metal played by bands like Manowar and Blind Guardian, this disc gets both operatic and oppressively heavy, sometimes, as in the case on "Salvation: Suicide", at the same time. Expressing their need for speed with the same vigor as they convey their yearning to reach the nougat-filled creamy chorus center on cuts like "The Voice Commanding You", Angra makes a metallic concept album about a religious manuscript by Saint Thomas of Aquin the subject matter of one hell of a power metal release. www.spvusa.com -Mike SOS

TWISTED INTO FORM
THEM COMES AFFLICTIONTO AWAKEN THE DREAMER
SENSORY
Norwegian metal dudes from a few different bands join forces, get all progressive, and reach jazzy peaks and technical metal excellence on Twisted Into Form's latest 10-track release. There's a slew of funk protruding out of tracks like "The Thin Layers of Lust and Love", while "Tear" and "Erased" display the relationship this band forges by capturing the sound of doom metal shaking hands with jazz fusion. If you've got a flare for adventure, can tolerate splashes of wankery and overindulgence, and own any Malmsteen or Watchtower disc, tracks like "Instinct Solitaire" and "Manumit" properly mesh the avant-garde and traditional metal from which Twisted Into Form draws its strength from. www.lasersedgegroup.com -Mike SOS

THE STRAPHANGERS
THE STRAPHANGERS
SELF-RELEASED
Queens, NY crew The Straphangers play a straight-up barrage of pissed off hardcore punk that explodes from the opening see-saw riff of 1. Strong back-up vocals and a distinct female frontwoman intertwine well here, as the tradeoffs are crisp and memorable, especially on 2. While the raw production holds a special charm, the undeniable metallic punch the twin guitars hold while maintaining the punk spirit would totally benefit with a beefed up studio session. Nonetheless, this four-track presentation showcases a band whose vitriolic angst-ridden tirades and circle-pit inspiring chaotic catchiness may garnish them both crossover appeal and immediate underground recognition. If you dig F-Minus, Biohazard, and Blood for Blood, you'll enjoy The Straphangers brand of real deal punk. www.myspace.com/straphangers -Mike SOS

XREPRESENTX
TRUE AT ALL COSTS
1981
Erie, PA straightedge crew XRepresentX play the kind of angst-driven chest beating hardcore you'd expect from four dudes weaned on a drug free lifestyle, right down to the brutal breakdowns found on "One Chance". Finding solace in the monstrous sounds of bands like Buried Alive and Ringworm, tracks like "Get Something" are as explosive as Madball yet as earnest in their message as Earth Crisis, while "Written in Blood" demonstrates these guys have seen their share of Hatebreed shows. While hardly considered groundbreaking, TRUE AT ALL COSTS is an album that brandishes its fair share of bonebreaking moments while staying genuine in its pursuit. www.x1981x.com -Mike SOS

URGEAL
GOATCRAFT TORMENT
SOUTHERN LORD
The opening strains of Urgeal's GOATCRAFT TORMENT reveals a raspy voice declaring "This is Satanic Death Metal". Talk about truth in advertising, as this 10-track endeavor's relentless worship of all that is evil is ingrained on every double bass blast and razor-sharp riff adorning cuts like "Gathered Under the Horns" and "Risus Sardonius". Replicating the classic recorded in a wind tunnel sound of the underground while upgrading the overall production to come out unabashedly raw yet thick and full, Urgeal's malicious intent and diabolical assault on both your beliefs and your senses ring true loud and clear. www.southernlord.com -Mike SOS

HERESI
PSALM II: INFUSCO IGNIS
HYDRAHEAD
Blackened Swedish metal served up with a side of hatred best describes the sonic battering of the five-track release from the one man wrecking crew known as Heresi. PSALM II: INFUSCO IGNIS is a ferocious album fused with shards of oppressive black metal riffs and technically proficient rhythms. Just check out the crawling dirge opening of "Dionyssisinitiationen" for an exemplary frigid moment or the rapid-fire Megadeth meets Emperor by way of At The Gates guitar lovefest that enables "Prosairesis" to reach startling heights as proof that Heresi draws from a plethora of metallic firepower and vitriolic venom to spit out upon your hapless soul. www.hydrahead.com -Mike SOS

FOUR LETTER LIE
LET YOUR BODY TAKE OVER
VICTORY
Yet another innocuous rock band put out by Victory Records, the five guys from Minnesota which comprise Four Letter Lie do the Taking Back Sunday meets Hawthorne Heights act with dashes of Glassjaw and Coheed and Cambria peeking through the overwrought but not as annoying as normal pseudo tough guy/ angelic vocal tradeoffs heard on tracks like "Cowboys & Indians". Despite the fact that these dudes have rad haircuts and look more well-groomed than Paris Hilton's pooch, the versatile musicianship displayed on cuts like "Full Tilt Boogie" trumps their gone-tomorrow look tenfold, while impassioned tunes like the title track and the driving "Tell Me Everything" illuminate this 12 track release's genre-shifting style and overall strong dynamic switches. Four Letter Lie is an acquired taste, leaning heavy on the Warped Tour punk and screamo/ emo border, but there's enough good stuff inside LET YOUR BODY TAKE OVER to warrant repeated listens. www.victoryrecords.com -Mike SOS

BLUT AUS NORD
MORT
CANDLELIGHT
Avant-garde French black metal troupe Blut Aus Nord's latest excruciatingly haunting offering MORT delves the listener into pits of despair wrapped in drunken dissonance. With its unique array of black metal brazen with woozy swirls of guitar feedback and industrial-tinged bleakness fully in tow, this eight-track endeavor provides a sinister mindtrip whose chills will encumber your bones long after the stop button has been pushed on the CD player. Not for the faint of heart or unadventurous spirit. www.candlelightrecordsusa.com -Mike SOS

ANAAL NATHRAKH
ESCHATON
SEASON OF MIST
Hailing from the United Kingdom, the demonic duo known as Anaal Nathrakh have put forth a maddening mixture of nine apocalyptic track juxtaposing pieces of the grind, black, and death metal genres into its own entity. Featuring guest spots by members of Napalm Death and Mayhem, this act's place in the upper echelon of extreme metal can be justified by the weight which their friend's carry, while the brutal blast beats, gripping guitar work, and tortured vocals which accompany such tracks as "The Destroying Angel" showcase the band's intertwining stellar musicianship and gruesome shared vision at its zenith. Anaal Nathrakh unleashes an unsuspectingly dastardly multi-front offensive with ESCHATON, an album whose misanthropic malaise has the propensity to fester in your soul after numerous exposures. www.season-of-mist.com -Mike SOS

KHLYST
CHAOS IS MY NAME
HYDRAHEAD
Khlyst is the unorthodox black metal album manufactured by your night terrors as told to members of Khanate and Sunn 0))). CHAOS IS MY NAME is the title of this eight-track affair whose songs go untitled and whose eerie feeling of desolation will reverberate through every level of your subconscious, summoning all of your internal fears and hopeless feelings of dread and despair to prey on your helpless soul. If you're looking for an ambient album that doubles as something to truly scare the living hell out of the neighbors, this album is the perfect choice, a cold and calculated deluge into the darkness. www.hydrahead.com -Mike SOS

MOROS EROS
I SAW THE DEVIL LAST NIGHT AND NOW THE SUN SHINES BRIGHT
VICTORY
Taking a decidedly angular approach while accentuating their fertile brand of indie rock with a slew of widespread influences, this endearing Georgia quartet can be stylistically linked to everyone from dredg to My Morning Jacket on I SAW THE DEVIL LAST NIGHT AND NOW THE SUN SHINES BRIGHT. Just check out the QOSTA freakout found on "I Saw the Devil Last Night" and the near-dance music quality which catapults "I Will Come Back Again" from being a typical punk rock anthem into something way more extraordinary as indicators of the master manipulation this outfit puts on throughout this 12-track offering. Equally eloquent, elegant, and mentally engrossing, Moros Eros is an esoteric punk rock group whose penchant for everything left of center whips up a frenzied yet totally satisfying listening experience. www.victoryrecords.com -Mike SOS

STEINWAY
STEINWAY
SELF-RELEASED
Steinway is a power punk rock outfit from Queens, NY whose two-track sampler demonstrates a love for all things heartbreak. Radiating punk rock's new found glories with a dose of melodic crunch, "Lines" sounds like Coheed and Cambria translated by Story of the Year, making this band automatically palatable for anyone 18 and under. Warped Tour-inspired and full of emotionally-tinged bounce, Steinway's release displays a digestible style and good sense of rock dynamics. www.steinwayrocks.com -Mike SOS

SCARS OF TOMORROW
THE FAILURE IN DROWNING
VICTORY
Southern California metalcore stalwarts Scars of Tomorrow return with THE FAILURE OF DROWNING, a well-manicured 11-track metalcore affair full of seething riffs and scornful lyrics. Songs like "The Unwinding" illuminate the band's undeniable love of the chunky riff, while "Relive the Curse" and "The Silence of Sorrow" get the pit going with staccato headbanging riffs. If you're looking for a buffer between Norma Jean and Full Blown Chaos, this disc is the perfect choice. www.victoryrecords.com -Mike SOS

BY NIGHT
A NEW SHAPE OF DESPERATION
LIFEFORCE
Swedish metal machine By Night has combined the most destructive parts of In Flames, The Haunted, Meshuggah, and Opeth on A NEW SHAPE OF DESPERATION, convincingly whipping up a Swedish smorgasbord of metal. This molten 11-track disc offers a never-ending extreme metal makeover, complete with the mechanical rhythms and well-measured heapings of oppressiveness found on tracks such as "Forsaken Love" and "People Like You". Sorrowful yet weighty as hell (just check those menacing bass line of "Time Is Running Out"), By Night fuse a multitude of heavy music nuances into a brutal batch of tunes that fans of death and thrash should fully embrace. www.lifeforcerecords.com -Mike SOS

MICROWAVES
CONTAGION HEURISTIC
CRUCIAL BLAST
The frantic bleeps, pitchshifted blips and scrawling feedback which dominates this 10-track disc classifies Microwaves as a hardcore band gone digitally insane. Just check out the jagged guitarwork of "Slime Aesthete" to realize that there's a method to this trio's unique brand of conformity be damned, rules out the window trashy noise rock, while the stoner rock gone to the meth lab vibe portrayed by "Song X" sticks throughout the album, producing way more binary codes and airwaves than your cranium can conjure, let alone withstand. Open minds and acid flashbacks required to fully comprehend and enjoy CONTGION HEURISTIC. www.crucialblast.net -Mike SOS

SKID ROW
REVOLUTIONS PER MINUTE
SPV
Skid Row's latest release REVOLUTIONS PER MINUTE captures a band struggling to find an identity after losing prolific singer Sebastian Bach. While tracks like "Shut Up Baby, I Love You" and "Nothing" closely chase the outfit's MTV glory days, there's an alarming amount of hoedown country and generally contrived material on this 12-track release when putting this alongside the band's previous work. While the crew responsible for "Youth Gone Wild" retains its New Jersey roots to a certain extent ("Another Dick in the System", "Let it Ride"), the overall lead singer switch and career continuation seems, sans a few choice moments, a bit underneath a band that went to the top of the Billboard charts. www.spvusa.com -Mike SOS

BURNING SKYS
DESOLATION
LIFEFORCE
Precise and punishing, the 10-track DESOLATION yields a blistering listening experience from end to end. Check out the modern death metal slam of "Damaged" as evidence that this quintet hold Lamb of God and Raging Speedhorn close at heart. Jackhammer rhythms with fine crafting twin guitar slayings adorning the old school charmed "Lurid Demolition" and the cutting "The Sweet Sound of Violence", while "RKD" savagely throws down a chunk of the new death metal flavor championed by bands like The Black Dahlia Murder and The Red Chord. In short, this disc thrashes about with enough tough guy antics and proportionately powerful riffs drawn from a vast spectrum of metal to keep the pit swirling throughout. www.lifeforcerecords.com -Mike SOS

EYES OF LIGEA
A FEVER WHICH WOULD CLING TO THEE FOREVER
PARAGON
With a daunting title and a penchant for Norwegian metal's basement recordings kicked into high gear, Eyes of Ligea's assault is draped in blackened doom, eliciting many moments of horned hand salutations. "Watcher in the Water" incredulously fuses the density of Crowbar, Bathory, and Xasthur, "As the Ravens Descend From the Tower" hypnotically blossoms from atmospheric doom into an eerie drone thanks to clever guitar and synth work, and "The Shadow Out of Time" stomps out a Florida sized chunk of death metal circa 1993. Benefiting from a performance of a full band, A FEVER WHICH WOULD CLING TO THEE FOREVER sounds ominous and organic, considerably upping its doom ante and giving this disc its most distinct characteristic. www.paragonrecords.com -Mike SOS

WOLVERINE BRASS
WICKED WITCH
AUXILIARY
Ah, the irony! There's nary a woodwind to be found on WICKED WITCH, yet the four fellows responsible for operating Wolverine Brass sure know how to make comparably sweet dissonance. Imbibe in the creepily jagged big-beat of "Snow Boots", the Steely Dan gone Shellac shuffle of "Wolverines of Ambient" or angular alt-country gone gothic vibe on "Percolator". Not shy about honing up their love for Sonic Youth, Radiohead and Nirvana, this seven-track endeavor takes the listener on a warped-speed tour of 90's alternative rock, leaving no stone unturned or influence unheard. www.auxiliaryrecords.com -Mike SOS

STOLEN BABIES
THERE BE SQUABBLES AHEAD
THE END
Stolen Babies is an ensemble who place no boundaries on themselves judging by THERE BE SQUABBLES AHEAD. This enigmatic 13-track presentation plays like a trip to the heavy metal carnival, complete with frequent rest stops at punk rock fury, prog rock attentiveness, and goth rock mystique. A plethora of instruments and a wide array of influences have been crammed inside these songs, giving "Filistata" and "Gathering Fingers" strong rock sensibilities wrapped around a vaudevillian sideshow display. If you dig Kate Bush, Mr. Bungle, and other acts with the flare for the dramatic and dynamic, this disc will be a welcomed addition to your collection. www.theendrecords.com -Mike SOS

STURMGEIST
UBER
SEASON OF MIST
What's hardest to tell about the 13-track UBER is if the trio behind it all known as Sturmgeist is taking a serious approach, but one thing remains clear throughout the galloping riffage of "Iron Hammer"; these guys, tongue in cheek or not, can lay down some serious multi-faceted metal. Taking the prevalent primitive metal attitude of bands like Celtic Frost, Venom and Manowar into the 21st Century by meshing electronic backbeats and orchestrations a la Rammstein or Ministry at its most provocative into the mix, cuts like "Enigma" unfurl a dollop of gloom while the vicious "Dobermann" serrates the skull with a black metal urgency. Even the Falco classic "Rock Me Amadeus" is given the programmed death 'n roll treatment, issuing a pleasantly disturbing guilty pleasure cover song. Versatile and industrial strength metal is served up courtesy of Sturmgeist, a unit as comfortable with an 808 as they are a twin guitar attack. www.season-of-mist.com -Mike SOS

BLACK ELK
BLACK ELK
CRUCIAL BLAST
Black Elk convincingly earns to be called the first part of its name, as this mammoth Northwestern quartet knowingly carries and lovingly dispenses the propensity to obliterate everything in its path with viscous rhythms and sinister bottom-end on songs like "Toss You to the Wolves". Utilizing math-rock guitar angularity with tremors of noise rock erupting constantly and the aforementioned brutal bottom end anchoring this entire eponymous ordeal, this 10-track release melds the wares of Melvins, Jesus Lizard and Mastodon into a severe hailstorm of shrapnel and napalm that shreds skin and cuts to the bone. Tracks like "Eyebone" take Satan to the disco, while the sinewy guitars on "Cuddles" show the unit's chaotic hooves working in hardcore unison. Epic yet underscored, Black Elk's majesty stems from its brainy approach to laying down brawny slabs of sludgy, crusty, and blackened metallic moments and its total lack of pretense that gives it a Nirvana-esque garage tape charm. An excellent choice if you're looking for something heavy and intriguing. www.crucialblast.net -Mike SOS

VAMPIRE MOOOSE
SERENADE THE SAMURAI
ROTTEN
The mooose is looose! Best run for cover good people of the world, St. Louis quartet Vampire Mooose has returned with a vengeance on the 11-track SERENADE THE SAMURAI. From the chameleon-esque chaos brought forth by "Portauri", the stop-start death metal vine of "Pujols" to the dreary disjointedness of "Esteban was Eaten", this outfit pushes convention aside and gets as organic as a band of this genre of metal can without compromising its integrity. Propelled by a ferocious drummer whose tom beats alone induce trances, these guys use their crossover appeal and vast array of musical depth to seemingly lead their peers in the pulling new tricks out of the bag department. By getting down and dirty in the most unsuspecting ways, such as bringing out the funk on cuts like the title track and unleashing a tribal percussive assault on "Sumatru", Vampire Mooose not only indulges their own guilty pleasures, but also let the listener in on the fun, too, making creative extreme metal along the way. www.rottenrecords.com -Mike SOS

JESUS KNEVIL
JESUS KNEVIL
SELF-RELEASED
Scathingly heavy and relentlessly abrasive, NYC's Jesus Knevil brought all their Suffocation and Immolation records to the strip club and return with this four-track endeavor reeking of liquor, smoke, and rock. Reminiscent of the time in the NYC heavy music scene when anything goes was the flavor of the month (Leeway, Blitzspeer, Crumbsuckers), this quintet manage to meld stoner rock, Slayer, NYHC crossover, and punk rock's anarchistic nihilism into metallic nuggets suitable for the moshpit or the stripper pole on The Damned by way of Motorhead-inspired "Dead People" and the Bad Brains meets Discharge stomp of "Cynical". Hard, catchy, and raw, this group throws down some solid slabs of crusty metallic rawk ready to rumble at moment's notice. www.jesusknevil.com -Mike SOS

CRADLE OF FILTH
THORNOGRAPHY
ROADRUNNER
The ever-controversial Cradle of Filth return with yet another symphony for the devil with THORNOGRAPHY. Providing the elaborate orchestration, speed metal antics, and dramatic flare like no other, this CD once again cascades over the top of metal's normal excess, making songs like "Under Huntress Moon" and "Libertian Grim" surefire diehard fan pleasers. But as always, Dani Filth and company always have something up their sleeve, and their movie soundtrack cover of Heaven 17's "Temptation" is just one of the many treats you'll get on this 12-track offering. Staying true with all usual tactics in tow on cuts like the Maiden gone black metal vibe of "The Rise of the Pentagram" and the breakneck rhythms and demonic vocals on "Lovesick for Mina", Cradle of Filth triumphantly retains its corpsepainted stripes while showing no fear or repercussion in their experimental dabblings such as working with HIM vocalist Vile Valo on "The Byronic Man". THORNOGRAPHY does the job in turning extreme metal on its ear with the unmistakable Cradle of Filth artistry beaming bright. www.roadrunnerrecords.com -Mike SOS


CRESCENT SHIELD
THE LAST OF MY KIND
CRUZ DEL SUR
American power metal that dips its toes into the prog realm best describes the Los Angeles quartet Crescent Shield. With a flurry of heavy metal histrionics in full effect, cuts such as "Burn with Life" showcase galloping guitar and operatic vocals galore, while "North for the Winter" is as Teutonic as you can lawfully allow, complete with a folksy sway and a massive solo section that wouldn't sound out of place on a Savatage record. THE LAST OF MY KIND is a spirited effort whose artisan viewpoint of metal renders a sweepingly epic yet slightly hollow play on NWOBHM with a decidedly power metal center, perfect to place in between Hammerfall and Jag Panzer. www.cruzdelsurmusic.com -Mike SOS

HANDFUL OF HATE
GRUESOME SPLENDOUR
CRUZ DEL SUR
Handful of Hate unleash an unholy offering riddled with diabolical depravity with GRUESOME SPLENDOR. This nine-track collection abducts you into the lair of the demon, with hellspawned vocals and foreboding arrangements such as "Ejaculation Dementiae" spearheading the descent. Featuring the blast beated mayhem emanating from every corner feel that only gives way for their many fist pumping Norse-like tempo changes before accelerating beyond comprehension, Handful of Hate has created a dastardly concoction of despair set to a crushing black metal backdrop. www.cruzdelsurmusic.com -Mike SOS

ASYSTOLE
ASYSTOLE
SELF-RELEASED
Asystole is a Massachusetts-based quartet whose far-reaching nu-metal grooves do go deeper yet always boomerang back and light up the Staind and Godsmack meter throughout the course of their seven-track affair. Strong vocals that switch from impassioned to enraged and a great insight into how to make Korn cookie monster downbeat endearing again assist "Taken Further", while "Washed By Tears" displays the band's love for both VOD and Tool. Steeped in stifling heaviness yet taking the pillow away from your face long enough to catch the contagious chorus of "Ambrosia", Asystole pounds out anguished aggression dipped in melodic metal for a crunchy take your shirt off and beat on your buddy experience. www.asystoleband.com -Mike SOS

THE AUTUMN PROJECT
A BURNING LIGHT
DEEPSEND
Stare deep into your lava lamps and drop out with The Autumn Project's latest five-track excursion. Lasting almost an hour, there's a lot of space in between the durable slabs of space rock to meditate with, while the majestic vibes of "Between the Smoke and Mirrors" mimic Isis as interpreted through Mogwai. If you need to get in touch with your inner metalhead, throw this album in your Pilates bag and get in the zone. www.deepsend.com -Mike SOS

MXPX
LET IT HAPPEN
TOOTH AND NAIL
Citadels of punk rock consistency, MXPX's latest 32-track release is a stacked reissue of the aforementioned album plus a whole lot more. Like three new studio tracks, old demos, and a DVD video compilation (not bad, eh?). While it's a given to say that this endeavor is jammed to the gills, this collection renders the opportunity for old fans ands newcomers alike to take an all-inclusive trip through MXPX's Northwestern punk rock journey. www.toothandnail.com -Mike SOS

BANG CAMARO
BANG CAMARO
SELF-RELEASED
Half hair metal demigods, half drunken karaoke gang vocal choir, there's no limit to the singing members Bang Camaro uses, which only intensifies this three-track sampler's overall speaker-rocking ability. With a hearty helping of 'the 70s arena rock guitar a la UFO and Montrose and sly bass lines not unlike Ted Nugent jamming with Scorpions laying the groundwork for Satan's Glee Club to raise their fists to rock, the Bang Camaro live experience needs to be seen, as it totally trumps anything they could possibly put on disc. Yet this sampler does an adequate job in giving the listener a glimpse of the "We are the World" meets Motley Crue vibe Bang Camaro nails. Imagine upwards to 15 metal dudes belting out party anthems at the top of their lungs while a full scale band plays their heartfelt brand of working class hard rock and Sunset Strip metal behind it all and you've got the most raucously ingenious yet guiltily cheesy project since the KISS reunion tour of...take your pick. For those about to rock out, Bang Camaro has arrived. www.bangcamaro.com -Mike SOS

TERMINAL SE7EN
TERMINAL SE7EN
SELF-RELEASED
Remember when Nirvana's BLEACH originally came out? Nah, none of you do, and odds are Terminal Se7en doesn't either. Yet this band has unearthed that special Seattle Endino garage rock sound to service their two-song sampler. Rumbling indie rock that leans on Kurt's shotgun prevails on this offering whose choppy guitars and swirling vocals summon the ghost of Cobain without even trying. www.terminalse7en.com -Mike SOS

RABIES CASTE
RABIES CASTE
DADA DRUMMING
Descending into the murky underbelly of metal, Israel's finest sludgecore unit Rabie Caste bid us a fond farewell with this seven-track disc. Concisely tying up all loose ends, this eponymous sendoff contains hard to find and live maelstroms of malevolence this band was accustomed rendering on the masses on a steady basis. Painfully slow, massively crushing, and sonically bruising, if you can't get enough Eyehategod or Crowbar, turn to this disc for some hypnotically-induced and mind-numbingly droning sludgy solace. www.dadadrumming.org -Mike SOS

IMPOSTER SYNDROME
FRESH AIR
SELF-RELEASED
Imposter Syndrome is a cagey NYC trio whose big hooks and sultry rhythms could easily draw comparisons to Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Blondie. Yet there's more than that on FRESH AIR, like the impenetrable NYC attitude which permeates through these four jagged pieces of pop elegance. Quirky without being inaccessible, tracks like "Should I?" sound like Olivia Newton John channeling The Runaways while the sinewy groove heard on "How Come?" shows this unit at its darkest and most melodic. Imposter Syndrome's latest disc offers their unique how to guide on the tips necessary to not only survive in the NYC music scene, but thrive creatively and build a distinct sound along the way. www.impostersyndrome.net -Mike SOS

ANTIQUUS
ELEUTHERIA
CRUZ DEL SUR
Canadian power metal comes courtesy of the quintet Antiquus, whose eight-track ELEUTHERIA goes off on a conceptual tangent while bringing out the eloquence of traditional heavy metal. You'll find a slew of extended intros, Styx-esque vocals, and exaggerated dramatics pouring out from every pore of tracks like "KT Event" and "Redemption". Yet underneath the flash and sizzle of cuts like "Meta Icognita" lie a major influence of classic metal like Priest and Queensryche seeping through speakers while acoustic interludes and spoken word dialogue round out the full metal assault. Good stuff if you still wear spiked wristbands and denim jackets. www.cruzdelsurmusic.com -Mike SOS

FEAST FOR THE CROWS
WHEN ALL SEEMS TO BE BURNED
BASTARDIZED
Nubile German quintet Feast for the Crows display an interesting blend of metal on their nine-track WHEN ALL SEEMS TO BE BURNED. Championing death metal vocals that stray into tough guy metalcore territory and backed by the musical conglomeration of In Flames, Agnostic Front, At the Gates, and Lamb of God in a massive jam, songs like "Skycleaver" will have you banging your head in unison, while "Realizing the Demise" revs up the circle pit. Sonically mindblowing and possessing a keen ear for writing compelling extreme metal, Feast for the Crows meld all of its metallic influences on this disc into a durable wall of sound capable of knocking the hell right out of you. www.bastardizedrecordings.de -Mike SOS

MANDATE OF HEAVEN
HUN IN THE SUN
SELF-RELEASED
The tenacious Mandate of Heaven returns with another batch of unsung multi-influenced indie rock in tow on HUN IN THE SUN. This 10-track recording marks the first time the project is officially a duo, as a full-time drummer has been added, shaping the songs in ways a one-man band usually lose in translation. Oodles of syrupy Jawbreaker versus Weezer riffs can be found stashed in tracks like "American Jet Fighters", while Foo Fighters and Hot Water Music fuel the burn of "Team Bird". Displaying a love for all types of rock from Smithereens to Ween, the quality of the songs attached to Mandate of Heaven's latest are declarative messages telling us there's something brewing in Upstate New York again. www.mandateofheaven.com -Mike SOS

PHAZM
ANTEBELLUM DEATH ''N ROLL
OSMOSE
Black metal punk rock? France's Phazm stabs at it with moderate results on ANTEBELLUM DEATH 'N ROLL. This 11-track collection takes a very different direction than most other bands who consider themselves part of the genre, as an apparent heavy blues virtue expounded by bands like Motorhead tangles with this quartet's Darkthrone obsession and Entombed worship, whipping up an odd blend that at times sounds like a slower, keyboard-less version of Children of Bodom on "Decay" or even Marilyn Manson on "How to Become a God". Demonstrating a flare for the cinematic a la Cradle of Filth yet staying as abrasive as possible on "The Bright", Phazm shows a versatility few black metal have the courage to encounter, let alone release. www.osmoseproductions.com -Mike SOS

ALUCARD
AFTER DARK
SEARCH AND RESCUE
The Michigan quintet Alucard keeps the listener guessing throughout the duration of the 10-track AFTER DARK. Playing like Trivium took over the bodies of Yellowcard, songs like "There With You" combine the sunshine punk of Simple Plan with the musical muscle of Coheed and Cambria, while "Pitchfork Revolution" sounds like Lostprophets and Alkaline Trio battling it out. Belting out dollops of Warped Tour punk, traditional metal, and dark hard rock, Alucard's uniquely jaded and rough around the edges sound is captured perfectly on AFTER DARK. www.searchandrescuerecords.com -Mike SOS

CRAVE THE AIR
CRAVE THE AIR
SELF-RELEASED
Crave the Air's homemade two-song sampler suffers from that cardboard snare drum sound among other studio horrors, but their clumsy brand of blackened power groove metal doesn't seem to be too effected. In fact, the gonzo production value only adds to the blood curdling mystique "Through Pain" carries, even though reality dictates that this entire album was recorded next to someone's washer-dryer set www.myspace.com/cravetheair -Mike SOS

NORMAN BATES AND THE SHOWERHEADS
PSYCHO TOO! 1987-1996 DISCOGRAPHY
HAUNTED TOWN
The NYHC outfit from Queens known as Norman Bates and the Showerheads vied for the crown prince of hardcore title alongside Murphy's Law, No Redeeming Social Value, and Muck Puppy in their heyday, which is lovingly relived thanks to this comprehensive CD release. From playing shows in a CYO basement with The Ramones (and placing the flyers in the album's artwork to prove it) in the late '80s to the inclusion of all of the outfit's compilation and radio appearances, the 23-track PSYCHED TOO! gives you a well-deserved bang for your old school buck. www.hauntedtownrecords.com -Mike SOS

MELECHESH
EMISSARIES
OSMOSE
Melechesh is a menacing black metal quartet whose 10-track offering is capable of conjuring up demons from the catacombs. Taking a decisively Middle Eastern tone not unlike Nile, EMISSARIES contains its fair share of ear candy whether it be via rigorous death metal shredding or through transcendental tribal percussion, yet the disc retains the predominant black metal style on cuts like "Leper Jerusalem" and "Ladders to Sumeria". Heady like Mastodon, screechy like Cradle of Filth, and as black as Dark Funeral, Melechesh's potent concoction conceived straight from Satan's cauldron provides quite the epic death metal journey. www.osmoseproductions.com -Mike SOS

GRABBA GRABBA TAPE
KURT KOBAYA Y G.R.O.X. MAN ODIA NIRVANA
SIMPLE SOCIAL GRACES
Bust out the glow sticks and get ready to shake it down when Grabba Grabba Tape hit the decks. Fusing Nintendo-like vocals with live drums and bouncy melodies, this Spaniard duo juxtapose Sabado Gigante and Erasure to comprise an alluring form of dance rock whose spastic robotics and ear for melody assist them in standing out above the trendy 12" crowd. www.simplesocialgraces.com -Mike SOS

DESTRUCTION
THRASH ANTHEMS
CANDLELIGHT
Rather than remaster their previous efforts, Destruction made the call to re-record all of its most infamous metal cuts. THRASH ANTHEMS is the end result, a 15-track meat and potatoes thrash album that displays this German trio's attention to precision and undeniable technical skill. Often revered as one of the pioneering acts in the thrash metal movement, Destruction's legacy is sonically upgraded in fine form thanks to the spirited effort put forth on THRASH ANTHEMS. www.candlelightrecordsusa.com -Mike SOS

FAREWELL TO WORDS
TEAR DOWN THIS WALL
BASTARDIZED
The exuberant German sextet Farewell to Words exemplify versatility on TEAR DOWN THIS WALL. Boasting cohesive twin guitar metallics, a male-female vocal tradeoff, and a solid rhythm section, this five-track affair tantalizes the senses with the serpentine vocals and operatic arrangements borrowed from the likes of Lacuna Coil and Bleeding Through to Maroon and Arch Enemy. While failing to distinguish themselves from the pack, Farewell to Words' overall impression portrays enough hope for reinvention and evolution. www.bastardizedrecordings.de -Mike SOS

TITAN
A RAINING SUN OF LIGHT AND LOVE, FOR YOU & YOU & YOU
TEE PEE
Harkening back to the garage jam band days of the psychedelic late '60s, the organically-charged Titan resurrect acid rock with origins intact on the whimsically-titled A RAINING SUN OF LIGHT AND LOVE, FOR YOU & YOU & YOU. This album does get that personal, by the way, guilding a kinetic path to your soul through trip-laden mounds of ripe feedback shrills courtesy of both keyboards and guitar. Imagine Deep Purple on mushrooms to get a sense to the kind of explosive bursts of hard rock love Titan more than capably breaks off and shares with the commune. If you dig Hawkwind and King Crimson, this band should be checked out immediately. www.teepeerecords.com -Mike SOS

MY BITTER END
THE RENOVATION
UPRISING
My Bitter End play the type of technical metal you need a industrial-sized slide rule to figure out on the 11-track THE RENOVATION. Truly developing a potpourri of sounds that range from death metal vocal gutpunches and squeals, intricate technical metal compositions, Killswitch melodic guitar swagger, screamo metal fretboard antics, and spastic turned deadly breakdowns, you may need a scorecard to follow it all. Nailing a certified power metal gallop on "To All Things Expendable" before the clouds close in and this upstate NY unit's version of metalcore melancholy takes over, this quintet displays its music geek locked in his room for eight hours with his instrument side with enough tough guy ammo and hardcore demolition skills on tracks like the power groove gone math of "The Suburbs Breed Showmen" to pull it all off. Think All That Remains going toe to toe with Misery Signals with Dillinger Escape Plan as special guest referee to sort it all out. www.uprisingrecords.com -Mike SOS

CELESTIA
APPARITIA-SUMPTUOUS SPECTRE
PARAGON
Black metal with a telescopic vision towards the black hole is what Celstia unleashes by re-releasing APPARITIA-SUMPTUOUS SPECTRE. This eight-track disc has its share of surprises, like the uncharacteristically upbeat opening to "Perverted Decadent, Dying, Love", which sounds more Red Hot Chili Pepper-esque than Emperor before delving into a deluge of keyboards and eerie vocals and the danceable darkwave of "The Radiance of Astral Light". Adorned with atmospherically suspenseful acoustic interludes on cuts like "The Fragrance of the Dead Rose" and laden with spine-tingling militaristic marches like "Necromelancholic Reveries", Celestia's lo-fi explorations of above from so far below sheds a darker light on the relative distance between the two worlds Earth is sandwiched between. www.paragonrecords.net -Mike SOS

ABIGAIL WILLIAMS
LEGEND
CANDLELIGHT
American extreme metal quartet Abigail Williams debut with LEGEND, a five-track indication that they have arrived. Sounding awfully close to Arch Enemy, songs like "The Conqueror Wyrm" share that virtuoso quality enrobed in vitriol, while "Watchtower" finds the band going into full-on Dimmu Borgir meets Old Man's Child black metal assault mode, corpsepaint not included. An interesting mix of what Europe knew about all along is what Abigail Williams delivers in a compact yet wondrous way, properly distributing all of its influences to make cohesive clumps of extreme metal excellence. www.candlelightrecordsusa.com -Mike SOS

CAMPAMENTO NEC NEC
PRESENTS ALINANA
SIMPLE SOCIAL GRACES
10-tracks of Guided by Voices meets Fugazi in Spanish best describes what Campamento Nec Nec is sending out via PRESENTS ALINANA. Recorded sans guitar distortion yet remaining hauntingly noisy and jaded, The Mars Volta's lush acid rock is championed here as much as tribal beats, Cure-like confessions, and swirling dissonance that makes complete sense when heard up close. World beat hardcore punk rock wasn't a properly coined identifier until this eclectic band of gypsies came along. www.simplesocialgraces.com -Mike SOS

LAETHORA
MARCH OF THE PARASITE
UNRULY SOUNDS
Gothenburg metal quintet Laethora may be a new band, but they boast the former guitarists of Dark Tranquility and Provenance in their ranks, so right away you have an idea of what kind of stuff they're capable of. The 10-track MARCH OF THE PARASITE displays a unit that stomps like Hatebreed yet crushes like At The Gates, especially when the solo kicks in on "Impostors". Flaunting its unbridled death metal darkness on "Y.M.B." while keeping the grind alive on "Revolution at Hand", Laethora have built an indestructible metal machine that venomously spits out lethal doses of extreme metal, putting a new spin on the pioneering sounds of Entombed and Napalm Death. www.unrulysounds.com -Mike SOS

LORDI
THE AROCKALYPSE
THE END
Horror shock-rock meets Gwar-inspired latex gore gone KISS-inspired mad best describes the mania that is Lordi. This quintet play the kind of sugar-coated hair metal anthems that Europeans can't get enough of, putting whips and chains on AC/DC on "Bringing Back the Balls to Rock" and even getting the legendary Udo to contribute to "They Only Come Out at Night". Best served with barrels of beer in a soccer stadium, this Finnish fivesome's latest entry into the metal costume ball gets a VIP pass. www.theendrecords.com -Mike SOS

NOVEMBER'S DOOM
THE NOVELLA RESERVIOR
THE END
Chicago metal merchants November's Doom return with THE NOVELLA RESERVIOR, a chameleon-esque cavalcade of intricate doom metal. This eight-track affair commandeers a blistering array of progressive power metal a la Nevermore falling into the black/death metal's pits of demonic despair ruled by Suffocation on tracks like "The Voice of Failure", while glimpses of the band's former self still ring out loud and clear on songs like the title track. With influences ranging from Katatonia to Crowbar to Opeth resonant across this disc, November's Doom's wide array of melded metallic tactics help to construct sturdy footings between metal genres, deservedly allowing tracks like "Drown the Inland Mere" the opportunity to rile up metalhead's from all walks of life. www.theendrecords.com -Mike SOS

TERMINAL
TEAR YOU FROM THE INSIDE
SELF-RELEASED
Terminal is a NYC veteran troupe who have undergone many lineup and stylistic changes through the years, yet still manage to retain what they've learned, add a few new tricks, and continue wreaking aural havoc. TEAR YOU FROM THE INSIDE is no exception, as they somehow manage to interestingly mesh Bad Brains, Scatterbrain, Cro-Mags, and Suicidal Tendencies into trainwreck hardcore brilliance that teeters on the brink of retro. Leaning on their vast musical experiences to create a late '80-early '90s potpourri of metal crossover, tracks like "The Chance" and "Earth, Evolution, Extinction" stand out as best examples of this unit's proudest moments this time around. www.terminalnyc.com -Mike SOS

VOLT
RORHAT
SOUTHERN
Crusty German noise rock trio Volt's nine-track endeavor is a cheeky interpretation of the early '90s NYC underground scene, as tracks like "Volt" and "Frommbug" suggest a love of all things Helmet and Jesus Lizard. Abrasive yet tuneful with a hint of the frantic funk of Primus, RORHAT repeatedly delivers highlight-worthy punches to the head, the merger of early Clutch, trippy Faith No More, and noise rock's anti-everything else getting naked and fucked up in the middle of nowhere. Off-centered and unorthodox, Volt's artistic expression of aggression stands out far above the pack. www.southern.com -Mike SOS

SOLEFALD
BLACK FOR DEATH
SEASON OF MIST
Subtitled AN ICELANDIC ODYSEY PART II, Solefald's sequel is laden with croaking doom ambiance, folk metal fanfare, and goth metal majesty. While the 12 tracks that comprise this release cater to the fantasy metal/ Lord of the Rings contingent, there's a discernible amount of experimentation ongoing in cuts like "Underworld" and "Dark Waves Dying" to soak in and some King Diamond-esque diatribes on "Spoken to the End of All" to keep the listener on guard. Genre-spanning and prolific, BLACK FOR DEATH widens their scope in order to properly tell their homeland's tales musically. www.season-of-mist.com -Mike SOS

GRAYCEON
GRAYCEON
VENDULUS
Accentuated by the odd mix of electric cello, guitar, and drums, this stripped-down yet subconsciously crushing San Francisco trio plays a deferred type of swashbucklingly gallant metal you'd expect from bands chanting while wearing cloaks. Grayceon puts a new spin on classically-tinged rock with this four-track excursion, melding organic musicianship with new-age ambiance a la The Fucking Champs to champion its own unique musical gift to the world. Looking for an indie rock band to get medieval on your ears? Grayceon answers the call. www.vendulus.com -Mike SOS

AGRESSOR
DEATHREAT
SEASON OF MIST
As Agressor gets older (now in its 20th year of humble metal service), they get angrier and more aggressive. Just check out the 12-track DEATHREAT as an indication that this French troupe of metal mavens hasn't softened up one thread since its inception. If you can't live without Kreator or Vader and need more militaristic metallic marches, Agressor is up for the challenge. www.season-of-mist.com -Mike SOS'

THE HANDSHAKE MURDERS
USURPER
GOODFELLOW
Violent tech metallers from Arkansas The Handshake Murders' pulverizing 11-track endeavor USURPER requires special equipment to properly enjoy. Like a flak jacket, a helmet, and a bunker to hide behind as Molotov cocktails "Painted Contortionist" and "How to Kill" are flung and explode through your speakers. If you dig Meshuggah, Converge, Will Haven, and Intronaut's boundary-breaking style, chances are USURPER will sound great played at maximum volumes on your home stereo. The Handshake Murders attempt to aurally cripple is proven successful thanks to the band's bleak blend of raw power and razor sharp precision. www.goodfellowrecords.com -Mike SOS

TRAP THEM
SLEEPWELL DECONSTRUCTOR
SOUND AND CULTURE
Grinding through 12-tracks of crusty death 'n roll, Trap Them's SLEEPWELL DECONSTRUCTOR carries itself as the soundtrack of a decimating plague's arrival. Panic-stricken and chaotically crumbling structures down with its sheer gale force of grind and death metal decibels, tracks like "Swine into Silk" and "Destructioneer Extraordinaire" stack up its Entombed, Godflesh, Nasum, Emperor, and Napalm Death influences, building an impervious wall of extreme metal terror. While mugging as apocalyptic and charred in disdain, Trap Them also manages to get a potshot at themselves in with the weighty hardcore metal of "Digital Dogs with Analog Collars", showing that even the most maniacal of metal bands sometimes shares its sense of humor. www.soundandculture.com -Mike SOS

THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
DEAR LOVE: A BEAUTIFUL DISCORD
RISE
The Devil Wears Prada takes a stab at a number of different styles on this Dayton, OH sextet's DEAR LOVE: A BEAUTIFUL DISCORD. Displaying a balls out heavy yet playfully experimental side, this unit ferociously dissects metalcore convention by adding keyboard overlays for chilling black metal effects while demonstrating the versatility to switch from a bouncy screamo part into the depths of hellraising metal on a dime. While songs like "Gauntlet of Solitude" dizzy thanks to the amount of changes contained, tracks like "Redemption" drum up a cinematic appeal with the majestic might of Swedish metal before treading into a progressive technical metal soiree. Screaming and yelling its way through, adorned with piles of jagged grooves and brutal breakdowns, songs like "Texas is South" showcase The Devil Wears Prada's distinct punk rock frustration sound that shares as much in common with Bleeding Through and Sworn Enemy as it does the local bill playing at the VFW hall. www.riserecords.com -Mike SOS

INTO ETERNITY
THE SCATTERING OF ASHES
CENTURY MEDIA
Canadian power metal troupe Into Eternity play like a less self-congratulatory Dream Theater gone death metal on THE SCATTERING OF ASHES, the quartet's 11-track affair. Relentless drums stand out across the board, as a twin death growl/ power metal shrill vocal gymnastic performance sets the music tone shifts from progressive metal wizardry to arena metal anthem to accelerated speed metal bedlam on tracks such as "Suspension of Disbelief". Challenging the genre's conventions through odd time signatures, inhuman bursts of speed, sustained high-pitched yells, and soul crushing lows, tracks like "Eternal" assist Into Eternity in making the hybrid sound of Shadows Fall, Nevermore, and Megadeth its own in grand fashion. www.centurymedia.com -Mike SOS

ROTTING CHRIST
THEOGONIA
SEASON OF MIST
Blasphemous as ever, Greece's Rotting Christ's version of black metal seems a bit updated this time around. The quartet's 10th studio album THEOGONIA returns to a speed-driven theme with songs like "Helios Hyperion" leading the charge, almost at times sounding like Hypocrisy meets Kataklysm. Still savage, the band retain its bite on cuts like "He, The Aethyr" and beyond, assuring another installment in the outfit's dark and driving demonic diatribes to follow. www.season-of-mist.com -Mike SOS

AMPLIFIED HEAT
AMPLIFIED HEAT
ARCLIGHT
ZZ Top meets punk rock best describes the trio of brothers that comprise Amplified Heat. Emblazoned with desert rock swagger carrying songs like "She Drank That Wine" and "I Don't Care" from the clutches of the blues and dirtying them with the pretenses of the most notorious rock around, the Tex-Mex shuffle meets West Coast punk sound portrayed here touches a vast spectrum. Hell, who doesn't like at least one Skynyrd song? Amplified Heat seems best at hemming and hawing with their metal voice in full effect in a dusty bar in Austin, TX, as they plot in joining Stevie Ray Vaughn, Eric Clapton, and Ted Nugent at the head and twisting through a Cream-like jam, lighting the stage on fire from the electric rock 'n roll experience. This masterfully recorded eponymous seven-track offering truly captures the band's bluesy essence and hard rock soul, giving this disc the vintage sound to match the band's heavy acid-hippie rock explosive momentum. www.arclightrecords.com -Mike SOS

MALSTROM
THE WORLD WILL BE LOST
SELF-RELEASED
Queens, NY quintet Malstrom continue to add weaponry to its vast arsenal of metal devices, crafting their latest near 60 minute seven-track affair with a discernibly fluid metal stance that flows from Mastodon-like crush to Opeth-esque gallop to Lamb of God's groove on tracks like "My Mortal Fetish". Mixing vast metallic styles to come up with their hybrid sound of progressive metal's penchant for soundscape exploration, European metal's majesty, and American metal's dissonance, cuts like "The War Will Be Lost" display a band whose dextrous knowledge of the metal realm allows their brand of epic songwriting to flow with authority and splendor, while "The Beast" throws the devil horns out in full black metal mode with its sinister fretwork and painstaking rhythmic precision. THE WORLD WILL BE LOST is an album rich in genre-shifting dynamics and intricate songwriting that truly embodies the spirit of today's modern metalhead. www.myspace.com/malstrom -Mike SOS

ABORTED
SLAUGHTERED & APPARATUS: A METHODICAL OVERTURE
CENTURY MEDIA
Death metal soldiers Aborted return with a tremendously tumultuous yet truncated 11-track album. Flaunting fat-free metallic infamy while maintaining an ultratight sound, tracks like the title song vie for the title of death metal's newest anthems of malevolence, while "The Foul Nucleus of Resurrection" melds grind and groove with shockingly serrated results. Beating the listener into submission with precise well measured blows of grinding death metal a la Suffocation, this quartet's latest presentation yields an apocalyptic metal masterpiece. www.centurymedia.com -Mike SOS

BRAZZAVILLE
EAST L.A. BREEZE
VENDLUS
Combining the quirky sunset rock of former bandmate Beck with the standards accessibility of Burt Bacharach, the 12-track EAST L.A. BREEZE is a lo-fi indie gem enriched with prolific instrumentation and clever dollops of imagination spurring songs like the passionate title track. Fleshing out the somber tones on ""Ugly Babylon" to elicit Tom Waits on happy pills comparisons while doling out stylishly sly pop-rock on "Blue Candles", Brazzaville's highly touted Roxy Music meets Steely Dan by way of The Eagles form of pop-rock champions Herb Alpert, channels The Carpenters, and rocks out like Chicago in the early days, creating an impressive amalgamation of pop-rock that tantalizes and captivates. www.vendlus.com -Mike SOS

LOST EDEN
CYCLE REPEATS
CANDLELIGHT
Shining in the role of Japan's answer to bands such as Shadows Fall and Soilwork, the quintet known as Lost Eden reveal impressive chops and bone crushing riffs on CYCLE REPEATS. The 10-track affair's crisp production captures this outfit's vast repertoire, highlighting the throat-ripping screams on "Before Burning to Ashes" to the acoustic serenity of "Sandglass" with stark beauty and savage grace. Technically sound yet righteously edgy, CYCLE REPEATS is a solid metalcore disc that fans of All That Remains, Bullet for My Valentine, and Bleeding Through can gnaw on. www.candlelightrecordsusa.com -Mike SOS

VARIOUS ARTISTS
SUCKING THE 70S- BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN
SMALL STONE
Sharing a love of fuzzy guitars and big hooks once more, Small Stone Records unleashes another batch of stoner rock units chewing on their 70s musical fantasies on SUCKING THE 70S- BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN. Providing bang for your buck, this twin disc contains 31 tracks of arena rock gems, disco shimmies, and undisputed classic songs from the era of the muscle car and polyester twistedly translated into bong-loading anthems. Check out the poignant Scott Reeder rendition of "Two of Us" by The Beatles, the ass-shaking boogie of The Glasspack's version of the AC/DC prize "Rock and Roll Singer", and the crusty spin Orange Goblin places on The Damned's "New Rose" for just a fraction of the Hessian highlights you'll ingest from this collection. www.smallstone.com -Mike SOS

FURZE
UTD
CANDLELIGHT
Can black metal ever groove? Look to the Alice in Chains-esque vibe that magically appears from the cacophonic chaos of the first few minutes of "Goatbreath" and the answer is a resounding yes, as proven by Norwegian evilmongers Furze. This enigmatic eight-track endeavor almost transcends the usual black metal moniker due to their Celtic Frost on meth approach to the genre. Poorly recorded and somewhat sloppy, yet hosting a bevy of intriguing compositions that are trumped due to poor mixing, bad instrumentation, or just plain old strange juxtapositions of sounds, this disc has a distinct Spinal Tap-esque charm in addition to the usual bludgeoning you receive from a black metal outing, making UTD an album whose prismatic approach disrespectfully treads on the blacker than thou aesthetic. www.candlelightrecordsusa.com -Mike SOS

GIANT BRAIN
PLUME
SMALL STONE
Detroit muscle rock meets German electronic rock in an epic battle on PLUME, a luxurious five-track escape administered by Giant Brain. The brainchild of Detroit scenesters that include the producers of some of Small Stones' most ornery acts and the ex-guitarist from Big Chief, this liberating release is laden with elegant grooves, trippy robotic beats, and a rigid yet flowing kind of rave DJ meets rock band aura that dudes that engineer Volkswagons and hit up Oktoberfest can normally fathom. But don't fret, there's enough material for your Hawkwind and desert rock side to rock out to. www.smallstone.com -Mike SOS

SLOT
THE SWEET BLACK BEAR
SMALL STONE
Sadly, the latest release from Michigan eclectic '90s rockers Slot is the trio's final offering, as this 12-track disc is not only a compilation of the band's unreleased works, but also a tribute to Slot's guitarist Billy Rivkin, who lost his battle with cancer in 2004. Unearthed from 1995, the songs on THE SWEET BLACK BEAR display a top-notch strand of shoegazing indie rock with dashes of grunge rock bark, psychedelic rock starchasing, and desert rock heft intertwined, complete with dollops of atmospheric feedback and sustain, angelic female vocals, and guitars that meld harsh tones with lush waves of swirling distortion on cuts such as "Bat Nav". Projecting its underground dream rock vibes with a set of balls and a discernible bite, Slot's swan song yields fond memories and a plethora of excellent heartfelt rock with a timeless expiration date. www.smallstone.com -Mike SOS

PAGANIZE
EVILUTION HOUR
CANDLELIGHT
Progressive metal marauders Paganize saddle up their steeds and ride into the crimson sunset with true majestic might on the 10-track EVILUTION HOUR. This Norwegian quintet liberally apply nuances learned through exposure of luminaries such as Judas Priest, Blind Guardian, Iron Maiden, and King Diamond on cuts like "Dark" and "Divinity in Vein", while "Turn of the Tide" exudes pure Euro power metal at its sharpest. This disc should come with a bonus backpatch to stitch on your denim jacket, as it rocks out like its 1982 in grand style. www.candlelightrecordsusa.com -Mike SOS

SASQUATCH
II
SMALL STONE
Simply stated, Sasquatch's sophomore effort II rocks. Hard. So hard that it grooves, shakes, shimmies, and swaggers like a graceful version of its namesake. This Los Angeles trio's bell-bottom blues and sunshine acid rock is on full throttle on cuts like "Pleasure to Burn", "Off the Rails", and the mega-jam of 2007 thus far "Seven Years to Saturn", bleeding even into acoustic campfire hymns like "Catalina". Fans of Fireball Ministry, Five Horse Johnson, and good old fashioned floor-stomping, whiskey-guzzling, bong-loading raise your hands in the air rock are going to boogie all night to this one. www.smallstone.com -Mike SOS

BENEA REACH
MONUMENT BINEOTHAN
CANDLELIGHT
Benea Reach is a genre-bending Norwegian metal unit whose latest 12-track endeavor reveals a keen influence from bands like Deftones and Will Haven as well as Meshuggah and VOD. Tracks like "Pandemonium" shapeshifts from growling metalcore to atmospheric Swedish metal effortlessly,"Immaculate" weaves a scrubbed-up black metal riff and a hypnotically robotic rhythm together as cold as anything by Meshuggah yet as jagged as Zao, and "Inheritor" conjures up Converge joining forces with Soilwork for a monstrous metallic trip. Far from the norm yet at times a bit incongruent, if you dig the sounds of today's metal melded into one band, MONUMENT BINEOTHAN is a fine album to check out. www.candlelightrecordsusa.com -Mike SOS

THE END
ELEMENTARY
RELAPSE
Canadian metal act The End play a dark and brooding progressive style of metal which embraces technical playing yet still manages to lash out with the aggression of ten tough guy bands on cuts like "Awake?". The abrasive riff and jerky groove of "Dangerous" proves the band picked an apt title, while "Throwing Stones" emits the perfect amalgamation of A Perfect Circle, Deftones, Chevelle, and Strapping Young Lad's best moments with a killer hook to boot. ELEMENTARY resonates all of the beloved nuances of today's metal upper echelon craftily compacted into cohesive cuts of prime metal. www.relapse.com -Mike SOS

COMEBACK KID
BROADCASTING....
VICTORY
Returning with ferocious velocity, Canada's Comeback Kid have nabbed the hardcore flag for a run in the sun with their latest 11-track offering BROADCASTING.... With help from legendary punk presence Bill Stevenson, tracks like "In/Tuition" and "The Blackstone" span the hardcore spectrum and come up with supertight riffs, gang vocal melees, and a bevy of solid breakdowns that are memorable enough to be rendered as instant classics. From the fierce Snapcase-esque feel of "The Blackstone" to the furious old school stomp of "Give'r (Reprise)", Comeback Kid continue to make honest hardcore that stings with melody and never fails to raise the spirits and rise to the occasion. www.victoryrecords.com -Mike SOS

THE DRAFT
IN A MILLION PIECES
EPITAPH
Forming from the ashes of post-punk heroes Hot Water Music, there's something discernibly more listener friendly about The Draft. On this 12-track affair, a less abrasive, more experimental melodic side of the reinvigorated unit rears its head on cuts like "Let it Go" and "Alive or Dead". Sounding at times like The Police and Social Distortion intertwined with the notoriously unstoppable Gainesville punk rock sound they pioneered, The Draft continues Hot Water Music's legacy of uniqueness, only without the vitriolic vibe, which may turn off old time fans immediately. Yet even if "Wired" sounds lifted exactly from Queens of the Stone Age and the Dropkick Murphy throw your arm around your buddy feel of "All We Can Count On" doesn't grab you, The Draft feels just fine going on their instinct, pushing boundaries while keeping a fine musical relationship thriving. www.epitaph.com -Mike SOS

FU MANCHU
WE MUST OBEY
CENTURY MEDIA
Fu Manchu's latest album marks the veteran stoner rock crew revisiting of their skater punk and hardcore roots as they churn out 11 fuzzy freakouts on the exhilarating WE MUST OBEY. Feel the slow burn of "Land of Giants" creep through your cranium while Scott Hill and company's trademarked soulful hard rock meets snarling punk rock blend permeates out of cuts like "Shake it Loose" and to the quick and quirky bong beat of "Between the Lines". And in true Fu fashion, another deep classic rock gem ("Moving in Stereo" by The Cars) gets the outfit's formidable four-star Orange County rock n' roll makeover. Fu Manchu's hazy hardcore is amped to 11 on WE MUST OBEY, as this take it back to garage approach displays a curt, compact collection of songs by a group who sound like they're having the best time of their lives. www.centurymedia.com -Mike SOS

APESHIT
APESHIT
SELF-RELEASED
10 minutes. 13 songs. Yeah, these guys kick serious ass. With a name like Apeshit, you'd better, and this Brooklyn noise collective does not disappoint. Fast and crusty with a slew of hooky riffs, manic drums, and a particularly stellar scratchy yelp, this band's whacked-out and chaotic musical mindset thrusts punk, metal, grind, and doom into the centrifuge. Problem is, no one put on the cover, resulting in a messy splattering of the aforementioned styles needing immediate attention. Destructive and panicked, Apeshit's music delivers the anguish-stricken vibe of being punched in the head defenselessly with noise-rock nihilism in full effect. www.apeshit.info -Mike SOS

THE HAUNTED
THE DEAD EYE
CENTURY MEDIA
The Haunted's latest release is risky yet rewarding offering. While the quintet's latest manages to maintain the Swedish outfit's signature thrash sound to various levels with mixed results throughout the disc, there's a bevy of simpler, more compact, and daresay commercially-safe songs here that are excellent, but not at all evoking The Haunted of old. Many longtime followers have turned tail on the band who've seemingly pulled a Metallica, but THE DEAD EYE, while slick, withdrawn and overly-theatrical, still has its merits. Peter Dolving's unique vocals, love them or not, provide a fittingly vivid narrative to the band's melodic metal meanderings and steer the ship with schizophrenic rampage, and while the band never thrusts into full gear here, there's enough spine-tingling twin guitar hard rock moments found on "The Failure" and "The Drowning" and the killer riff and rhythmic combo of "The Medication" to quell doubt that The Haunted ever lost anything at all. While this is a far cry from what you may know of The Haunted, their change of direction, infusing of different styles, and other experimentations with the genre found on THE DEAD EYE are intriguing enough for open minded fans and kids listening to Avenged Sevenfold alike to turn their heads and check out. www.centurymedia.com -Mike SOS

FOUR DAYS TO BURN
LIEUTENANT B/W CASINO BITCH 7"
DADA DRUMMING
Fort Worth, TX sludge mongers Four Days to Burn get all crusty on your ass on their latest 7". Two tracks of noisy Sabbath worship by way of down home walls of feedback adorn this slow burning 10-minute jaunt that should spark anyone that enjoys the well-traveled roads shown to us by Eyehategod, Kylesa, and Superjoint Ritual. www.dadadrumming.org -Mike SOS

SINCE THE FLOOD
NO COMPROMISE
METAL BLADE
Earnest Massachusetts-based hardcore roaddogs Since the Flood take the blend of compressed aggression made popular today by bands like Hatebreed to heart across the entire span of NO COMPROMISE. This 12-track chest-thumper also recalls bits of NYHC stalwarts like Madball and Killing Time, especially when slugging it out on cuts like "Everything to Lose", while "Gone Tomorrow" effectively resonates the Merauder-esque mayhem of old and the speed of Sick of it All and the power of Terror collide on what becomes "At the End". Far from groundbreaking, this quintet's lacking of a strong sense of identity hurts them immensely here, , NO COMPROMISE focuses solely on bashing in skulls, leaving a trail of blood and bones behind with little else left to gnaw on for later. www.metalblade.com -Mike SOS