RAKE OFF, IMPAVIDUS AND CYBER HATE album reviews

Rake-Off from Italy play short sharp bursts of angry hardcore... The guys play well tough and do a convincing job with some quite tight and to the point bursts which stay entertaining the whole way through. The boys got together out of various bands from the local scene at the start of 2016 and by the end of the year had recorded and released the demo you see linked underneath this review. This is a well produced and great sounding little affair too, which serves well as a demo and a great teaser for whats to come next....... I gather it was only released on a limited run cassette late 2016 but now made available through bandcamp real cheap. This might appeal to fans of madball, agnostic front and the like. You could do a lot worse than give this a listen! https://rake-offhc.bandcamp.com/

Impavidus formed out of the UK in 2015 but even though they are a new unit the members have all previously been in bands and you can tell from the initial listen this is no beginner band! The sound of the sits somewhere along the lines of Arch Enemy with some quite techie music with vocals that sit fairly similarly to that of Angela Gossow, but with some clean vocals thrown in which I think gives the music a bit more of an accessible and memorable edge than just being an "Arch Enemy" clone, which lets face it a lot of bands tend to do! Anyway this here is their debut EP which was recorded in 2016 for your enjoyment! https://impavidus.bandcamp.com/album/impavidus

Cyber Hate: Here's something different ,,, its a hard one for me to review (as I don't listen to much in the way of industrial metal) there are a lot of techno parts in this and I can see how this would alienate many listeners but if you can get past that and listen with an open mind this isn't too bad... In fact its quite enjoyable. This is my second listen to it now and I'm starting to understand what the band is trying to achieve. To my ears it reminds me of Korn / Fear Factory in both their metal and techno phases but that's really because I can't think of much to compare it to. When the boys do get rocking there are some really cool metal bits which cross over into melodic metal / death metal territory at times with some great keyboard/ piano work spread through it. It's really a tough one to pin down, with so many different angles that the guys approach things from. Everything is recorded and presented rather professionally and rather easy to listen to. This won't be for everyone by any stretch but these guys are good at what they do and definatley worth having a listen to find out if you like it or not! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYwBtTRFEEA

DEIFIED, SET BEFORE US and ENDLESS CURSE ALBUM REVIEWS

Here's another batch of Heavy Metal Reviews for you! This time round we got Endless Curse from Germany, Set Before Us from Sweden and Deified from the UK! Read on dear listener....

Endless Curse Album review: This is some old school crusty death metal from Germany. I have to confess I listened to the wrong album first (which I think was an earlier demo) and thought to myself "these guys would be pretty cool if only they had decent production" Thankfully by the time I figured out which was their new stuff I was supposed to listen to, the production had improved markedly! I still think this release could benefit from some pro mastering (I think the album was self recorded) but to my delight the musicianship has also improved a long way as at least one of the songs was on both releases and allows this reviewer to compare the progress the band has made. The music is old school death metal in the vein of early death and a million old school death bands (like baphomet, incantation, immolation etc...). Its hardly groundbreaking stuff, but overall a very enjoyable to listen to and great to see bands still doing this stuff .... https://www.youtube.com/user/EndlessCurseTV

Set Before Us are another relatively new band hailing from Stockholm, Sweden... Their sound is a modern death / metalcore with influences like parkway drive / August burns red etc.... the band have been making quite a name for themselves touring Sweden, Germany and the surrounding regions. While this is not my chosen alloy of metal, I have to admit the boys are good at what they do, the songs I've heard are well written played and recorded and more importantly very easy to listen to. Some really cool melodic guitar solos punctuate the dropped down riffage adding some great contrast to whats going on. Some clean vocals and occasional keyboard breaks also spice things up nicely. Definately worth a listen if you're into metalcore but also if you're not into it this could be a great way to get aquainted with what the kids are listening to :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8g4I_FFuhU

Deified..... HOLY CRAP! U.K's Defied have certainly got an intense sound going on ... for my ears it sounds like a cross between death metal / thrash / and tech death... but it is a rather accomplished release. These guys do not piss around and a release like this can only come about through hard work and perseverence... well done guys! Some ultra tech 'angular' riffage (for lack of a better word) and drumming that can stop on a dime and start right back up again like nothing happened. I like this vocalist too ... great projection and presence ... obviously I'm not the only one as it topped the OCZ reader polls a while back.. and more importantly scoring a slot on the BLOODSTOCK metal fest. Over all this is a very classy act and I wish the guys all the best, the future is theirs! Don't take my word for it tho.... check the guys bandcamp page and hear for yourself! https://deifieduk.bandcamp.com/

DEMON INSIDE / EIGHTY88HATE / PROBLEM WITH DRAGONS / KOLD CREATURE REVIEWS

At Obscure Chaos Zine we've been getting a whole heap of material to review... here's some of the latest stuff we've been getting in! links are provided so feel free to check out and listen to some great new bands!

@officialldemonsinside are a Brazillian band that combine a few influences the guitar riffage of pantera and megadeth with some dirty rockin' female vocals. The overall feel of the band reminds me of a band meldrum. The bands aim is to create something unique and they've come pretty close, The band is still relatively new and in some respects probably still finding their feet, but in this short period of time since forming in 2014 have created something pretty cool, and varied (I've been checking out their soundcloud page as well) I look forward to seeing what these guys can do in the future https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUPT02Bh8TM https://www.facebook.com/pg/OfficiallDemonsInside https://soundcloud.com/demons-inside

Eighty88eight are an alternate / rock / metal combo from Milano, Italy formed in 2012 and releasing their first release, Step by Step in 2013 and a second EP which has yet to be released was recorded in 2015 which features this newly recorded video, MONSTER! Its not the heaviest tune that we featured by any means but its not a bad listen at all for those that appreciate the more rockin' alternate end of the metal spectrum. Great sound, riffage and production and an immensly watchable video defainately make this worth checking out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7eDxLUdrro

Problem With Dragons are a doom/sludge band from massachusetts USA... they combine riffage with some dissonant soundscapes its more than just doom tho as there are some faster metallic / punkier bits but all through the album that sludgey doom sonic range is present with lots of delicious feedback. The vocals can be harsh or eeiree/haunting affairs with some cool multilayered effects. This is not going to be for everyone but if you can imagine a cross between earlier bloody kisses era Type O Negative and Pentagram with all your favourate sludge thrown in this may be just the ticket for you! https://problemwithdragons.bandcamp.com/album/starquake

Kold Creature are a vairied and interesting act featuring some heavy and powerful vocals that range from a nu-metally Korn to an older school Testament style heavier vocals... with some quite interesting riffage with a great command of lighter and heavier styles and which might appeal to fans of machine head and some dynamic drumming these lads from Queensland, Australia are making some pretty cool noises .... definatley worth a look and a listen! https://www.reverbnation.com/koldcreature/songs

HEATHEN DEITY - RELIGIOUS PURIFICATION THROUGH FIRE (DEMO REVEIW)

HEATHEN DEITY - RELIGOUS PURIFICATION THROUGH FIRE DEMO

Heathen Deity are Black Metal from Merry old England.... their album starts out with the usual atmospheric intro that many band before them have used.... and then into the real stuff .... nothing unique or particularly groundbreaking but I have to admit the boys are pretty good and know how to construct a good song. Quite solid stuff... Kinda reminds me of Satyricon but most black metal fans would get something out of this.... the third song however starts to set them apart some very emotional old english style acoustic and clean tone electrics make for a very atmospheric listen showing how much talent these guys have. The recording is suitably grim but clean enough to let the listener comprehend what is going on which I think is important... this isn't your usual 'recorded in a toilet demo' it actually sounds pretty good and conveys the black metal feeling rather well.

https://heathendeity.bandcamp.com/…/religious-purification-…