Metal Assault: Album Reviews

By Andrew Bansal

Witchaven is a blackened thrash metal band that has been around in the LA underground scene since 2006. Through sheer hard work and dedication, they have steadily risen in stature, venturing outside of LA and appearing at high-profile events like SXSW and Maryland Deathfest. They released their debut full-length “Terrorstorm” in 2010, and as a follow-up to that, their new 7-inch titled “Sacrificial Burnt Offering” was released a couple of days ago, on Friday the 13th. Continue reading “Review: Witchaven – Sacrificial Burnt Offering EP [9.5 out of 10]”

By Andrew Bansal

Olympia, Washington’s traditional metal quintet Christian Mistress will soon release “Possession”, their first album on Relapse Records. The band’s 2010 release “Agony & Opium” was simply fantastic, and songs like “Riding On The Edges”, “Home In The Sun” and “Poison Path” garnered them a reputation as one of the most impressive names in the gamut of bands that form the new wave of traditional heavy metal. Watching the band perform these songs live is one of my favorite memories of 2011. So, I was expecting great things from this follow-up album, and I’m glad to say that it meets these high expectations of mine. Continue reading “Album Review: Christian Mistress – Possession [10 out of 10]”

By Andrew Bansal

Australian extreme metal band Psycroptic are ready with their fifth studio album “The Inherited Repression”, their first album since September 2008 and the second on the Nuclear Blast label. I got introduced to the band when they opened up for Nile on a North American tour in late 2010, and was impressed by the manner in which they presented their material on stage. They’ve taken a lot longer to write this particular album as compared to the previous four, which only raised my expectations and heightened my anticipation for it. Continue reading “Album Review: Psycroptic – The Inherited Repression [8.5 out of 10]”

By Andrew Bansal

Los Angeles-based progressive death metal band Mouth Of The Serpent have just released their second album “Manifest”. It’s a worthy successor to their 2010 debut full-length “Inception”, and I have seldom come across albums that drive their point as precisely as this one does. Continue reading “Album Review: Mouth Of The Serpent – Manifest [9.5 out of 10]”

By Andrew Bansal

UK-based stoner metal band Orange Goblin will release their seventh studio album “A Eulogy For The Damned” on February 14th. It’s the band’s first album in five years, and their first since signing to Candlelight Records. After listening to this album, I can safely say that the band has made a great start with their new label, and I foresee a long-term relationship between them. Continue reading “Album Review: Orange Goblin – A Eulogy For The Damned [10 out of 10]”

By Andrew Bansal

After releasing “Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light I” last year, Seattle-based experimental drone doom veterans Earth are ready to release the second half of the double album. The first half proved to be a highly captivating 60 minutes of music, specially upon hearing the band perform some of it live. So I was eager to find out how this second part compares to it, whether the band has done anything different musically, and how the two are related. Continue reading “Album Review: Earth – Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light II [9 out of 10]”