By Andrew Bansal
British heavy metal cult legends Saxon released their 20th studio album ‘Sacrifice’ earlier this year via UDR Music. The newest chapter in an incredibly prolific 37-year old career, the album delivers quintessential Saxon at its finest, highlighting the perennial strength of their musicianship and songwriting which is still just about as good as it’s ever been. Continue reading “‘Top 50 Albums Of 2013’ Countdown – #21: Saxon – Sacrifice”
By Andrew Bansal
Based out of Portland, Oregon, crossover thrash band Toxic Holocaust have been around for 14 years now, having started out as a solo project by frontman Joel Grind but evolving more and more into a band as time went on. While Joel Grind still remains the band’s principal songwriter, their fourth studio album ‘Conjure And Command’ was the first to be recorded by the full band rather than Joel Grind playing all instruments himself. The follow-up album ‘Chemistry Of Consciousness’ came out via Relapse Records earlier this year and takes Toxic Holocaust a step further forward in this new incarnation. Continue reading “‘Top 50 Albums Of 2013’ Countdown – #22: Toxic Holocaust – Chemistry Of Consciousness”
By Andrew Bansal
Formed by vocalist Kobra Paige, Canadian heavy metal band Kobra And The Lotus have been pursuing their musical journey since 2009, but this year they’ve broken out into the spotlight and garnered attention in a manner more emphatic than most other new bands have been able to. Kobra Paige is obviously the face of the band, but the stigma that’s associated with female-fronted bands has, for the most part, escaped Kobra And The Lotus as they’ve been able to win fans through a display of sheer musical talent on their studio compositions and the quality of their live performances. Their self-titled album was released this year on Gene Simmons’ label in association with Universal Music. Continue reading “‘Top 50 Albums Of 2013’ Countdown – #23: Kobra And The Lotus – Self-Titled”
By Andrew Bansal
Canadian technical death metal band Gorguts started out in 1989 and then disbanded in 2005, but ended their hiatus and reformed in 2008. Since then, they’ve been touring and writing new material, which finally resulted in the release of their long-awaited fifth studio album ‘Colored Sands’, which came out via Season Of Mist Records earlier this year. Their first since the 2001 effort ‘From Wisdom To Hate’, this was a hugely hyped album in the extreme metal community, and the band had a lot to live up to. Continue reading “‘Top 50 Albums Of 2013’ Countdown – #24: Gorguts – Colored Sands”
By Andrew Bansal
Boston MA-based modern metal band Revocation released their fourth full-length album via Relapse Records this year. This record is perhaps appropriately self-titled, as it represents and showcases the entirety of Revocation’s musical repertoire, led by guitarist/vocalist David Davidson who is held in high regard by fans and critics alike as one of modern extreme metal’s finest musicians. Continue reading “‘Top 50 Albums Of 2013’ Countdown – #25: Revocation – Self-Titled”
By Andrew Bansal
Boston MA-based crossover thrash outfit Ramming Speed released their second full-length album ‘Doomed To Destroy, Destined To Die’ via Prosthetic Records earlier this year, a crowning achievement in their fledgling career. The relentless hours on the road and the insane number of live performances have clearly hardened and primed this quintet into becoming a tighter, more focussed and more dynamic group of musicians. Continue reading “‘Top 50 Albums Of 2013’ Countdown – #26: Ramming Speed – Doomed To Destroy, Destined to Die”