IN MEMORIAM

Richard Gene Brunelle

06/09/1964 – 23/09/2019

R.I.P.

THE PAST IS ALIVE: New Videos And Music From MAYHEM, CIANIDE, ABBATH, IRONSWORD, CONCATENATUS, VACIVUS, DIE KUNST DER FINSTERNIS

MAYHEM have just released a lyric video for "Of Worms And Ruins" a brand new track from the upcoming album "Daemon". It is the second track revealed from the album, grandiose and fast that in a few  seconds will probably remind you to DMDS, thanks to the distinctive voice of Attila Csihar...

facebook.com/mayhemofficial

Chicago´s old-school metallers CIANIDE will return with a new attack of Dark Death-Doom Metal.
The band have just premiered a new video for "The Serpents Wake".  The track appears on the band´s upcoming MLP "Unhumanized".
It will be available as Vinyl/CD/Tape and casssette on November via Hells Headbangers. 

facebook.com/Cianide

ABBATH have just released a new video for the song "Hecate",  I´m not a fan of ABBATH´s music, but I must admit that I like this song, taken from the album "Outsider", which seems that many people like it. 

facebook.com/abbathband

Portugal´s IRONSWORD will release a new EP entitled "In The Coils Of Set" through Alma Mater Records on October 28th.
The baand have just premiered the lyric video for one of the three tracks included in the EP, specifically the title track.  Horns Up!!! 

facebook.com/IronswordOfficial

"Unfathomable Depths" is the title of the debur full lenght of Chile´s CONCATENATUS. The album was releaed last September 20th through Totenmusik and Van Records limited on 300 copies on vinyl and CD. The band premiered the video for the fist single "Liberum Essentia"...

facebook.com/concatenatus

The third full-lenght of VACIVUS entitled "Annihilism" will be released via Profound Lore nex October 25th.

The first single "Shards" was revealed a month ago (check it out here) The band has now shared a second song, the album´s title track...

facebook.com/vacivus

DIE KUNST DER FINSTERNIS is an an obscure and tenebrous solo project of Kaeffel (founder of Hetroertzen) formed in 2007. After a demo and two full-lenghts the band will release the third album "Revenant In A Phantom World (Queen Of Owls Addendum)" through Lamech Records and Amor Fati Productions on October 31st.  We can enjoy a very cool video for the track "Madame Tuberculosis". A true dark gem...

facebook.com/DieKunstderFinsternis

PENTACLE "Spectre Of The Eight Ropes" new LP

Ancient Death Metal returns! A brand new and long awaited studio album from PENTACLE will be released soon (probably late this month) via Iron Pegasus Records. Pre-orders for "Spectre Of The Eight Ropes" already available here. Artwork by Manuel Tinnemans.

WORSHIP VINYL: THE LORD DIABOLUS (BEHERIT) "Down There..."

In 1991 BEHERIT recorded and released the demo "Down There..." under the moniker of THE LORD DIABOLUS, due to some problems the band were having with Turbo Music back then.

Now Dark Descent Records and The Sinister Flame presents the official first-time vinyl reissue of this classic demo.

The release contains four tracks and comes as heavy weight 180gm 12" with an etched B-side featuring the iconic Baphomet Sigil.
Pre-orders available through The Sinister Flame (Europe) here, and through Dark Descent Records here. Release date: October 31. 

UNDEAD To Release Debut Album - Launches Video Clip

After releasing two great EPs Spanish Death Metallers UNDEAD will unleash the debut album "Existencial Horror".

The album will be released as CD version via Godz Ov War Productions on late October.

Check Out the video for the opening and killer track "Haunted By Hate"...

Exitential Horror track-listing:

Haunted By Hate

Masters Of Mankind

Sin & Death

Saanta Muerte

City Of Silence

Existential Horror

Curse Of The Undead

Sarcophagus

Beyond Divine Regulation

facebook.com/curseoftheundead

MEFISTO Unleash new single "Armageddon"

MEFISTO revealed today the first single "Armageddon" taken from their upcoming album, which will be released later this fall.

The song features Chaq Mol of Dark Funeral on solo guitar.
You can stream the track on digital platform here.

Follow the band online and stay tuned for more news. Hail Mefisto!!!

facebook.com/mefistoband

TRIBULATION "Alive & Dead At Södra Teatern" new live album/DVD

TRIBULATION reveals details for live album/dvd.

"Alive & Dead At Södra Teatern" is TRIBULATION´s first live album, recorded at Stockholm´s Södra Teaternmain hall.  Regarding the the setlist, performed in two acts, the band comments: "We played "Down Below" from start til finish in the first act with a stage set up we've never used before, something that could hint at a future development. Time will tell. The second act was the more traditional act with the old stage design and an array of old songs"

Alive & Dead At Södra Teatern will be released on the following dates:
-November 15th (digital) via Metal Blade Records (North America)
-November 15th (all formats) via Century Media Records (Europe)
-November 29th (2CD+DVD, LP+DVD) via Metal Blade Records (North America)

Alive & Dead At Södra Teatern track-listing:
AKT I:
The Lament
Nightbound
Lady Death
Subterranea
Purgatorio
Cries From the Underworld
Lacrimosa
The World
Here Be Dragons
AKT II:
Trollens Brudmarsch
Melancholia
The Motherhood of God
Rånda

Ultra Silvam
Guitar Solo
Strange Gateways Beckon
Strains of Horror

CIRITH UNGOL "I'm Alive" live album/DVD

CIRITH UNGOL will release their new live album/DVD, "I'm Alive", via Metal Blade Records On October 25th.

Recorded at the Up the Hammers festival in Athens, Greece, "this recording showcases the magic and might of the band onstage. It's accompanied by additional performances recorded at the Hammer of Doom (2017) and Rock Hard Festivals (2018) in Germany. For this monumental release, a special in-depth documentary spanning 2 hours in length was recorded, which includes exclusive interviews about the history and legacy of the band, as told by the current and original members".

"I´m Alive" can be preordered here in different formats.
The band launched new video for the title track, check it out below... 

THE PAST IS ALIVE! New Videos and Music from GRAVEYARD, URN, NILE, 1349, DIKASTERION, MGLA

GRAVEYARD from Spain premiered the video clip for the track "Winds Like Daggers", taken from the band´s 4th abum "Hold Back The Dawn".
A fast track, heavy, with a dense and dark atmosphere. Superb Death Metal!
The album will be out on September 20th via War Anthem Records.

Black Thrashers URN will release the new album "Iron Will Of Power" through Season of Mist.  "Hunted" is the official music video taken from the album.
Raw and wild as usual from this old school maniacs. The album will be available on September 20th. Order here.

A new album by NILE is on the way. "Vile Nilotic Rites" is the title of the album, to be released on November 1st via Nuclear Blast. "Long Shadows Of Dread" is the opening track and also the first single,  
Heres the official lyric video, Enjoy!...

1349 premiered a third track from the new album "The Infernal Pathway". This time is te turn for "Striding The Chasm"...
Out on October 18th through Season Of Mist

Good news from DIKASTERION, the Belgian Black Metallers will release the debut 7" EP "Stevelot 1597/Rome 897", on september 9th through Amor Fati Productions. The band´s debut demo last year was a great surprise, I recommendo yout to check out the interview we did to konw more about them.  The band are streaming the EP in its entirety here. I hope it doesn´t take too long to see their debut full-lenght!

MGLA released "Age Of Excuse" last week through Northern Heritage. The band´s 4th full-lenght raised highly expectations due to praising of their previous album "Exercises In Futility", released in 2015. 
"Age Of Excuse" is solid, dynamic, sometimes epic Black Metal.
The album is available for full streamimg, check it out...

WORSHIP VINYL: MARDUK - ABRUPTUM exclusive EPs

BLOODDAWN PRODUCTIONS will put out some exlusive and interesting releases. MARDUK´s "Winged Death" shaped 7" picture LP with cover poster limited to 500 copies contains 2 live tracks, "Wolves" and "On Darkened Wings" recorded live in Nokkoping in 1993.

The second release is ABRUPTUM´s "Apostoli Infernum" presented also on shaped 7" picture LP, with poster cover limited to 300 copies. Featuring the title track, which is a brand new unreleased track exclusively available on this release.

Both 7" LPs wil lbe out on October 14th. Preorders are availabe on the official bandcamp store (here) and also through Shadow Records.

"Orchestra Of Dark"  was the third demo from ABRUPTUM released in 1991 and was the tape that caught the attention of Euronymous and led to the signing to Deathlike Silence Peoductions. 

The demo will be released by Blooddawn on CD/MC and LP, The vinyl version will be limited to 500 copies, 400 on black and 100 on bloodred. 

THE PAST IS ALIVE! New videos and music from MAYHEM, ANGEL WITCH, OBITUARY, SACRED REICH,NOCTURNUS A.D.

MAYHEM shared the brand new track "Worthless Abominations Destroyed" from the upcoming album "Daemon".

The album, to be released on October 25th by Century Media will be available on differrent formats, including LP+CD boxset. 
"Worthless Aboninations Destroyed" sounds majestic, with great gtuitar and drum sounds and the epic and dark voice of Atila. Very promising indeed...

NWOBHM veterans ANGEL WITCH return witn a new album. "Angel Of light" is the title of their 5th full-lenght.

"Don´t Turn Your Back" is the first single premiered a few days ago via Metal Blade, which will release the album next November 1st.
It´s great to hear the good old sound of Classic Heavy Metal!!

Well this is quite a surprise. I didn´t expect this new single from OBITUARY. "A Dying World" is available on Relapse Bandcamp, spotify and other digital plataforms. Good track, but nothing too exciting coming from the floridian death metallers. 

SACRED REICH released new stuff 23 years after their last album. The comeback album "Awakening" Was released last august 23rd throuhg Metal Blade. 

Their latest video clip is for the track "Divide And Conquer", check it out. Old school thrash metal.

This time I saved the best for the last. NOCTURNUS A.D. released this awesome video clip from the song "Apotheosis". An awesome video, for an excellent track, probably from the album of the year. Enjoy and hail NOCTURNUS A.D.

INTERVIEW with FILII NIGRANTIUM INFERNALIUM

The following interview should have been out a long time ago, but for several reasons, it has not been able to see the light until now. Anyway, it´s always a blasphemous pleasure to talk with Belathauzer ato learn about FILII NIGRANTIUM INFERNALIUM. Last year they released “Hóstia”, another powerful, raw and dark album on the band's discography. To dig up more details and to know the current news of the band, read on.

How are you Belathauzer?  Did the lovely cold weather come to Portugal already? Hope you are in the mood to answer some questions about the new album.  (Yeah, some time has passed since then... - Chris)

Hello… Yeah, finally some cold has arrived. I hate the summer hot, unless you take some thermic rest in a church, tasting the gourmet taste of unholy flesh. But I’m never in the mood to answer questions, that wouldn’t be trVue, would it be? Let’s goooooo! [Some months later:] So it seems we’re still here.

Personally “Hostia” is what I expected, your recognizable blend of black, heavy old school metal is stronger than ever, in that dirty and blasphemous way. What were your influences during the composition process? (Musical and non-musical influences)   

HOSTIA is what you expected? What a burnout! (yeah, although with some gothic keyboards ala C.O.F. I would have had a good laugh ;) - Chris) Anyway, unfunny reactions like mine apart, thanks for your feedback! Yeah, we’re proud to be dirty and blasphemous! Never take a bath unless you’re raped by a priest, and then the bath should be a BLOOD bath. Our influences were the same as always: Priest, Accept, Bathory, Celtic Frost, Venom, Slayer, Sarcófago, etc. Lots of bloodred wine and beer, tobacco, and specially a pilgrim trip I did into the Lungs of hell…I mean, the Vatican. Problems, lots of problems, this fucking fake slave-life we have to carry out along the days. We hate this society, all societies. So we are always fucked up but trying to party and CREATE art anytime this time-stealing humanity allows us to do.

How long did the process last since you started writing music for this album until the last touches in the studio were finished? How do you usually feel during the whole process, more anxious? More tense? Absolutely fucking normal…?

This album was created throughout years, even decades. It’s always like this… Riffs come along the years and then, in 2 months of years of decades we assemble the stuff and then the matter is created. About the whole process mood… Man, are you really interested on this?? Well, in fact I find the recording process a real creative cauldronwise process, where satanic miracles happen, where we can introduce new melodic and different nuances we tend to overlook in the compositive garage days. Now we’re recording 4 new tracks, one of them is 10 minutes long and we’re experimenting and melting so much diverse instruments, like baroque trumpets or real heavy metal voice, with guests and so on… That this is the supreme moment in our band life.

The album cover is one of the most blasphemous seen in the last times, at least as far I can remember. Who was the idea of that concept? Paolo Girardi certainly did a great job, what was the first thing you thought when you saw it finished for the first time?

It was my idea first, I was those days (june 2017) in São Paulo, trying to survive that apocalyptic city, maybe I’m exaggerating but it’s so overwhelming and massive (I like smaller towns, and specially no so massively populated), and then this idea came out to me, the idea to join all three monotheisms which come from Judaic postmesopotamia and create this kind of three headed Madonna Culona, wich is a kind of a feminist statement anyway, about the sadomasochistic way women are controlled and impaled in these three religions of “Love” and “Mercy”… I don’t know, cerveja Brahma and my nihilistic readings of Jean Paul (Richter) and my works on the Grotesque surely helped.  At first, my drafts were expressionist drawings, extremely rude, thinking on the War and Pain’s cover by Away, or the RRROOOAAARRR LP artwork. But the awesome Girardi came in, thanks to Hervé and Osmose support, and the whole initial idea was pushed quite forward: I sent to the great painter my idea and we spoke about our favourite painters, etc. Then I evolved from the dark and grim tones and raw, basic drawing, into a revivalist perversion of one of the most perverted periods in religious art: XVIII century. Between the baroque and rococo art, and since Girardi studied thoroughly and deeply that period, working as restorer of actual real Italian baroque frescoes… That’s the idea behind the Madonna Culona sodomized by the Supreme Impalement Inquisitor, the High Pig-Cardinal and his pig flying roseflesh virginal cherubs. It’s a grotesque depiction of Catolic imagery but it refers to the 3 global psychopath religious corporations, because any monotheism is in its dogmas far more grotesque than what any blasphemy could ever express. It’s also a homage to the – in fact – great art of those times, because Paolo Girardi paints in the old way: no photoshop or shit like that. You can sense the brush and its traces, in the shadows, the clouds, the skin and the flesh.  So it’a quite ambivalent cover. Not the usual dark and gloomy death or black metal cover. Ah, a curious note: it got a censorship action in Spotify… And Osmose put a hilarious combinations of cucumber and tomatoes to protect the viewer’s innocence of the bloody excrementous impalement of the 3 faces Madonna culona.

Would you name five of your fave album covers? What do you think about Sarcófago´s Rotting? Name the album covers that you would define as classic or iconic.

Five are ONLY five! But… Slayer – Reign in Blood; Celtic Frost - To megatherion; VoiVod: War and Pain; Motorhead: Overkill; Darkthrone: A Blaze in the Northern Sky.

Hell, I’ll add some more covers which do not end to fascinate me, us: Iron Maiden’ Powerslave, Bathory’s Under the sign of the Black Mark, Sodom’s Obsessed by Cruelty, Mercyful Fate’s Don’t break the oath and King Diamond’s Fatal Portrait.

The Rotting cover is quite nice, although technically it fits the title, since it’s a very kitsch and floppy use of spray. But the result is really sick. When I was in Belo Horizonte I got me a shirt in Cogumelo Records store.

Now please tell me about the concept behind the album title, its meaning and the blasphemous words of the album intro, “Prece” (prayer).       

It’s a prayer (Prece) or our own: «Our Lord’s Lady, slaughter of mortals / Curse us, sinfully generated…» Man, we love Catholicism, it’s an awesome source of delight and perversity! Just like the Hóstia concept, the liturgy of eating a bad cookie for the sake of Christ. The kneeling sadomasochist ritual which every Sunday in all catholic temples represents the oral sucking addiction to Christ phallus sintetized into a small and extra-thin (like menstruation tampax) cookie. Every Sunday, kneel (to Christ and in some extention, to Allah or Yaweh), for a major divine collective rape. In order to have faith, either you have to be completely idiot or desperately idiotical. Which comes to be quite alike, anyway.

One of my fave tracks, is “Lactancia Pentecostal”, tell me about this track. Do you have a personal fave on this album?

I love «Autos de Fé», but «Lactância» is certainly one of my favourites, and of course «Pó» and Virtudes da Prostração (Virtues of Kneeling) are fave ones. And SMRT/NADA, a nihilistic poem created in Czech language in homage to Master’s Hammer and Root. Fascinator!
As you did on the previous alum you included one track sung in English, “Raze the dead (of Death)” did the lyrics came spontaneously or did you plan to do it that way.        

When we composed this song, as always happens, music came much before than lyrics. But since voice is an instrument as everyelse, I put during rehearsals some lines in a mix of intuitive words, and the refrain / chorus came to me as something like “Raise the Dead”, with Bathory’s song in the back of my mind. Then, on the recording day I told Helregni: «You should write a lyric to this song», which he did, in English, while waiting in the Bus Stop. And then I told him: «I’m not singing this one. It’s up to you». And he certainly has the necrorocknroll tone this track needs!

Tell me about the video clip you did for the track “Po”.

The previous other guitarplayer, Ironfist,created this clip. We wanted to do something in a low-fi tone. I like watching live playing images. But what I really would love is to film an absolutely black clip. I don’t care much about images of bands: music should be and is mainly music. So soon we’ll create another videoclip, with weird stories. So you know our «Guerreiros do Trovão» clip? That’s a meaningful clip. (yeah, really cool, I shared it when I posted our previous interview - Chris)

How were the contacts with Osmose, and how was the possibility of the reissues of Fellatrix and Pornokrates?

Nuno, the guy behind the label CAVERNA ABISMAL and a very fine death metal band, ARCHAIC TOMB, did the job. Do please allow me not explore this subject… About FELLATRIX, IT IS NOT A REISSUE, but a new and different LP based on the music and lyrics which in FDP (2005) came out to be recorded in a way which 1) does not matches  the fiercy intensity that we have achieved when we play the songs nowadays, and 2) the 2005 FDP was cool at the time, but it had the wrong lineup. I mean, the drummer who created all the drumlines was kicked out by a junkie guitarist who only thought on how fine and beautiful and how many chicks he fucked. And the drum… I could tell you some things about that 2005 false drum. But lets go on… So I always wanted to make FELLATRIX real.  And my voice has many flops, there. My voice control is nowadays far more accurate. So when Osmose agreed to publish a new (and more real) FELLATRIX, man, we grabbed the chance and RECORDED the REAL FELLATRIX. IT IS NOT A REISSUE. (Yeah I know, mea culpa, but I fixed it in the next question - Chris)

The Pornokrates is also a grat idea by CAVERNA ABISMAL and we’re glad Osmose was interested. We’re so proud of these records, which hadn’t been as well spread as we would have liked, due to the labels magnitude. We hope that now FILII NIGRANTIUM INFERNALIUM will conquer the world! The world war III, I mean. Obviously.

Las time I asked you about “Fellatrix Discordia Pantocrator” you told me you were not satisfied with some tracks and with the drums, and the possibility of a re-recording, so you finally did it…  

Yes, as I said in the previous question. Check it on the youtube or, far better, in our bandcamp.

Last year you released “Inmunditia Odii Plena” featuring Bactherion demo and FNI (in)famous “Os metodos do pentagrama” on mighty vinyl, and a special version including cassette, tell us about this cool release.

Down With The Most High and Chaosphere dis the job, long yeartime project. But it certainly was worthy. All the artwork was prepared by Helregni and myself, but specially him. I think that the tape is a real valuable document of early 90’s black metal underground in Portugal, since it contains our 2^nd gig, with the participation of Langsuyar, Nisroch and Isenputh (Moonspell and Decayed members). And the same goes about the full length magazine which was printed and it’s a very, very special part of this release. I must confess that I wasn’t quite fond of that demo, but this magnificent production changed radically my ideas relating that infamous 93 release. It all sound terrible, but that’s how things were in  the underground… Graças a Deus.

You were quite busy on stage last summer, do you have any cool anecdote from the festivals, or perhaps good memories from any show?        

Yes. But I don’t lake too much festivals. I prefer smaller shows, both as audience and as an artist. Well, not an artist…Fuck art.

If you had the opportunity to represent a character in the remake of an old movie (or get into the skin of the original character), which character would you like to play?

I don’t know, really. I never feel really identified with characters in movies. I mean, if I watch Star Wars or Mad Max, it’s fun but I don’t feel any desire to be in there. When I was a teenger, maybe. Not now. My favourite movies come from expressionism and weird stuff like Fellini or David Lynch, or Kubrick, which avoid the identification from the audience with any of the characters. Jesus Hitler, ha! Well, I’d enjoy a lot to be the Hitler burners in Tarantino’s Unglorious Basterds.

Tell us about your next plans, more gigs, working on new songs?

Yeah, new songs, We now have a new guitarist, Cardeal Aborto XIII, and as I said we’re in studio, recording, So hopefully this year we’ll deliver new songs, maybe 4 for an EP or so.

Once again thanks for your time, a pleasure and an honor from my side, last words are yours…

THANK YOU! Keep the tenebrous grim flame burning on and on!