Note: Feliz Cinco de Mayo, carnales! Although this is belated, in actuality, most Mexicans don’t really celebrate this. BUT that still doesn’t stop us from some drunken debauchery! You wanna feel traditionally Mexican and remain metal/punk? Play some Metalachi, Brujeria, Asesino, Mictlantecuhtli, Piñata Protest, Café Tacvba crack open unas heladas and call yourself a Mexican for a day! In the meantime, here are some albums to add to your drunken soundtrack!
Lucifer’s Dungeon Is Released at Last
The Russian black metal duo known as Lucifer’s Dungeon has released their studio debut album The Dark Army Raises through Grimm Distribution. The brainchild and front man Cain Black features an array of ambience and sounds of old school Norwegian black metal. More of the latter is featured with “Unconscious Faith,” “War,” “Burn Your Dogma” and “The Forest,” just to name a few. “The Dark Army Raises” presents the ambient black metal sound with vocals features some great guitar play from Black himself. If instrumentals are your thing you are in luck friends, and you will love “The Last Day of Life,” “III Lives of Dark Angel” and “The Secret” which sounded like something that came from an earlier Ghost Bath demo.
Lastly, Lucifer’s Dungeon dabbles in a style similar to that of Darkthrone’s Transilvanian Hunger with the Fre“The Answer” and “Beyond Good and Evil.” It was a pretty good debut and will definitely ride on the nostalgic black metal train. The Klown recommends this album for die hard black metal enthusiasts and for those who fancy themselves kvlt. Finally you can check this out on the label’s bandcamp.
5 out of 6 Lock Up Has Never Sounded So Good.
Freiheit Liberates their Newest Album
If you know your German, the word literally means freedom. In a twist befitting an M. Night Shyamalan movie, this blackened death metal quartet is from Russia and has released their long awaited studio debut Безумие. Ненависть. Смерть (Madness. Hatred. Death) via Grimm Distributions. The album begin with the short but pretty strong and singing intro “C.C.C.K” which then transitions to “Волк” (Wolf) and had the Klown thinking he was listening to some earlier Carach Angren. Not to be outdone by “Мясорубка” (Meat Grinder) which sounded like a spry Dimmu Borgir if they had death metal and folk influences incorporated as well as rapid double bass drumming courtesy of Pavel Melnikov. However, Freiheit really bring you some fast death metal with “Корпус Смерти” (The Corpse of Death) and “Монумент” (Monument) which features Alexandr Merzliy’s smooth but harsh growling vocals. If you’re the type that’s big on brutal death metal “Технократия” (Technocracy) and “Свобода” (Freedom) are the tracks you’re definitely going to enjoy. Lastly, this album finishes really strong with some really fast paced death metal “Горящая земля” (Burning Earth). If you don’t mind hearing Russian vocals but enjoying the fast paced instrumentals then the Klown highly recommends this. You can also check ’em out through the Grimm Distribution’s bandcamp.
6 out of 6, The New Sound of Freedom has Arrived
Full Of Hell Release Their Latest with Some Fanfare
The self proclaimed Martians known as Full Of Hell have made not one but two appearances in Ugh Metal. On that note, check out the articles in which they were featured after you done checking this out. Anyway they have returned with a fifth installment Trumpeting Ecstasy through Profound Lore Records. This album was a little different than what the Klown has heard in the past from this quartet. Full Of Hell first takes an ultraviolent approach with “Deluminate” and “Bound Sphinx” but they immediately revisit their brand of grindcore with “Branches of Yew” and “The Cosmic Vein.”
This album contains a handful of guest vocalists such as such Isis’s Aaron Turner, Andrew Nolan of Column of Heaven in “Ashen Mesh,” and Canadian pop beauty Nicole Dollanganger in “Trumpeting Ecstasy” which became the Klown’s favorite track. “Trumpeting Ecstasy” has Dollanganger’s soothing and angelic voice beautifully mixed with Walker’s beastly growls, his mixing board and some autotune. Lastly, “At the Cauldron’s Bottom” feature Converge’s Nate Newton’s harsh vocals to make a really intense and doomy closer for the album. The best part of that song is the ending because of how the electronic ambient sounds from Walker is incorporated, making it seem like a march to an epic battle leaving you satisfied after the album. You can check this latest album out through the label’s bandcamp.
6 out of 6, Will leave you in ecstasy
Nagaarum Continues to Bear Fruits of Experiments
The one man experimental black metal project known as Nagaarum has released his 14th studio album titled Homo Maleficus via Grimm Distributions. The Hungarian man known as T.G. Nagaarum starts off his new album with “A Befalazott” (The Walled) which can be described as very experimental and ambient doom metal with some black metal vocals. Despite that description, the song is more instrumentals which is not a bad thing before you misconstrue the Klown’s words. “Az Elvhu” (The Principle) and “A Vassal Nevelt” (Raised with an Iron) pick up the pace and are rather intense considering that they’re somewhat slow paced and ambient. “Mens Dominium” and “Dolgunk Végeztével” (When We’re Done) offers experimental black metal with some electronic sounds and synths making the songs borderline Industrial. “Kolontár” was definitely the most befitting way to end the album. Why? Aside from the song being deliberately slow, it seemed rather appropriate to top off this album’s irregular direction and almost present a bit of normality to this piece. The Klown definitely recommends this album for those who are in true ambient and experimental black metal. Drop by their bandcamp as well.
5 out of 6, Damn Good
God Dethroned Latest is FIRE
The band most synonymous with the Dutch metal scene, God Dethroned has produced a new album after seven long years titled The World Ablaze through Metal Blade Records. The legendary quartet quickly start strong with “Annihilation Crusade” which is made stronger with that sweet guitar solo. In a twist of patriotism combined with cynicism “The World Ablaze” serves as a great and borderline sludgy song especially because of the heavy melody it and the meaningful lyrical content that front man/ guitarist Henri Sattler offers. “On the Wrong Side of the Wire” and “Close to Victory” features the melodic death metal that the band was known for. “Escape the Ice (The White Army)” features a bit of brutal death metal to the mix and also features another sweet guitar solo from Mike Ferguson.
“Breathing to Blood” was only awesome but had the Klown thinking that it was a lost Amon Amarth track, regardless of how is sounded for a brief moment it was just awesome in general with the intensity and speed that it carried. Looking for a song to head straight into battle? God Dethroned gots you covered with “Messina Ridge.” “The 11th Hour” was basically the perfect closer for this album because it was melodic and somewhat slow paced and leaves you clamoring for more. This album not only did well to commemorate the fallen soldiers and it’s more than in time for Memorial Day but it was a great comeback. The Klown definitely recommends this album especially if you are die hard God Dethroned fan. Don’t forget to get your copy now! 
6 out of 6, FIRE
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