The Vision Bleak is one of the most interesting and underestimated bands in the metal scene. This time the indomitable duo Allen B. Konstanz and Ulf Theodor Schwadorf decides to venture in the realm of witchery horror story and, inevitably, Grimm’s fairytales as theme for the long awaited full-length “Witching Hour”.
“A Witch Is Born” is indisputably the catchiest song on the album. An overload of doomish guitar riffs blasting through an ominous rhythm will have an immediate strong impact even on first time listeners.
“The Blocksberg Rite” kicks off with a lovely eerie flute melody that continues to bring a touch of folk throughout the mid-paced guitar riffs. The chorus sounds like an evil mantra that certainly fits the haunting mood.
“Cannibal Witch” feels like a dark anthem with a slower gothic rhythmic tapestry. The vocals follow smoothly the persistently sinister atmosphere and the addition of spooky organs towards the end just makes everything more entertaining.
“The Wood Hag” incarnates the fairytale mood perfectly. If you close your eyes and follow the harpsichord melody you might risk getting lost in the Black Forest where the witch is obviously hiding.
A song like “The Call Of The Banshee” is totally expected on a witchery themed album. The guitar riffs and drumming are pressing and tight but the overall rhythmic core seems a little repetitive. Still, the solemn mysterious vocal delivery and the luminous arpeggios bring noteworthy moments.
Despite the obvious trendy spellbinding theme and the palpable intricate mist of darkness that defines the instrumental style, “Witching Hour” provides a generous dose of entertaining grooves and memorable melodies. At the same time, the whole album seems to aim to please many and sometimes lacks the genuine gothic masquerade appeal of cult albums such as “Carpathia- A Dramatic Poem”. Certainly, there are many individual songs full of tempting and haunting musical inspirations on “Witching Hour” that cannot (and must not) go unnoticed.

Orphaned Land is one of those bands that do not really require any formal introduction. Despite the long career, the Israeli band has not released many albums but each full length is well known to hold an incredible musical strength and intensely peaceful messages. These reasons alone would be enough to justify the great expectation behind the release of the latest album entitled “All Is One”.
The title track is quite easy to love with that elegant epic taste in the guitar work and the euphoric strength of symphonic metal. At the same time, you will always be attracted by the oriental folk elements that here are particularly joyous.
It cannot be denied that the Middle Eastern theme is exceptionally intense on “The Simple Man”. The music core here is certainly radio friendly with mid paced rhythm, pleasantly melodic guitars and powerful choirs.
“Let The Truce Be Known” easily follows the same musical pathway. The melodic side of the band becomes once again the preferred choice. The rhythm is further slowed down to reach a palpable melancholic mood gracefully rendered by the keyboards work without putting aside the strong oriental vibe.
“Through Fire And Water” is a more complex and definitely more interesting track. The intricate sitar intro is just breathtaking. The melodic guitars are fluently adorned by loads of sorrowful keyboards, but the authentic highlight is represented by the cathartic ensemble of emotions portrayed by the male and female vocals.
“Fail” has a remarkably darker mood where guitars steal the scene with delightful progressive rock melodies. While the song starts with a heavier approach and intense growls, there is still space for more accessible tunes and super clean guitar solos.
“Our Own Messiah” is powerfully dramatic both in terms of lyric content and music style. Yet, the lead guitars and the choirs deliver an uplifting vibe that makes you hope for a better future. Following the delicately slow breakdown, the passionate musicianship displayed on the guitar’s progression and solo cannot go unnoticed.
With “All Is One”, Orphaned Land has delivered a collection of meaningful songs that will hopefully reach a wider range of listeners worldwide.

Listening to “Resurrection” by Death SS feels like a full immersion in the perilously dark realm of nostalgia. Even if nothing on this album will win prizes for innovation and creative energy, there will be a certain dose of childish guilty pleasure associated with each and every song. Even if the band has been around since the 70s, it was back in 1991 that Steve Sylvester & co. truly rocked the scene with the breakthrough release of “Heavy Demons” bringing evil corruption and horror everywhere around you.
It is noteworthy that Steve Sylvester’s voice is still in great shape after approximately thirty years of career.
“Revived” is a straight forward heavy rock guitar driven tune with the addition of modern electro elements that renders it quite dancy. The rhythm is undeniably groovy and Steve Sylvester is running the (freak) show with feverish vocals.
“The Crimson Shrine” is like the traditional blast from the past. Nothing is too heavy on top of the traditionally metal style keyboards. But as expected, Steve Sylvester’s vocal delivery is the reason why you will love this song. His voice is scratchy and somehow melancholic on this slow paced tune adorned by the most classic heavy guitar solo all licks and distortion.
“Dionysus” is all about classic rock guitar riffs but still quite gothic with a somewhat retro flavor especially on the female chorus. If you like the romantic/gothic vibe elegantly delivered by the keyboards work, you will definitely enjoy the similar sweet decadence that overwhelmingly diffuses through “Star In Sight”.
“Ogre’s Lullaby” is exactly a nightmarish lullaby with a tormented doomish guitar riff in loop made to bring the full of the creepiness of the monsters under your childhood bed.
“The Devil’s Graal” is a quite enjoyable slower track with a deeply melancholic acoustic intro and a classically fully shred guitar solo.
“Bad Luck” opens up with Steve Sylvester’s twisted laughter and traditionally distorted rock vibe. This is a not to be missed fun horror rock tune with full blast guitar riffs and crazy solo tapping.
Overall, “Resurrection” is a very consistent and strong album in terms of both style variety and musicianship. It is definitely a must have for the band’s eternally loyal fanbase.

Once upon a time, Deathstars was a big deal, a band with a mesmerizing creative force that filled each and every song. Then, that explosive bright light started to dim for no apparent reason.
Deathstars gives it another shot after the sadly disappointing “Night Electric Night” in 2009. So, after some years spent focusing exclusively on writing process and music exploration, the band released “The Perfect Cult”. Hence, this is an album that truly comes loaded with anxious expectations.
Listening to “The Perfect Cult”, among some obvious mixed feelings there is this sort of weakness lingering between riffs and melodies. It’s not really a matter of being innovative at all costs in a music scene where the majority of releases focus on a recycle process, it’s more about the art of delivering a sentiment of passion through music.
“Explode” doesn’t live up to its title. Among flat guitar riffs, there is a catchy rhythm hiding in there but it just fails to create a mood. Whiplasher’s vocals truly attempt to bring a solid strike of energy to cheer the atmosphere.
“All The Devil’s Toys” is the one song that should force you to pump the volume and dance until you fall dizzy on the floor. Nice concept, groovy guitars, but it ends up losing its strength and charm long before the song is over.
“Ghost Reviver” holds the haunting shadow of “Termination Bliss” deep inside, therefore it could be classified as the happy encouraging moment of the album.
The title track has a very catchy chorus and the sinister toned vocals are quite entertaining, yet again it cannot be considered a memorable song.
“Bodies” gets a straight synthetic rock attitude that certainly feels refreshing with loads of darkly atmospheric keyboards that deliver a tragic sense of decadence. In general, the slower goth oriented rhythm seems to flow steady and spontaneously.
“Noise Cuts” is another valuable track if only because it successfully delivers the intoxicating hopelessness of the dark side that we got used to embrace in Deathstars’ previous albums. The synths tapestry, elegantly composed and executed, feels like the perfect complement for Whiplasher’s melancholic and mischievous delivery.
In the end, I really wanted to fall desperately in love with “The Perfect Cult” but it seems impossible at the moment, so maybe I’ll just wait for the next release and try again.

By now everybody knows that The Birthday Massacre has successfully developed a uniquely sinister and cute visual/musical image. There is an awful lot to love about this band, just think about the cartoon like violet themed album covers and the mischievously bloody school uniforms. And, of course, there is the music. It all started with creepy videogame synthetic/alternative rock that inevitably instigated curiosity in the scene. In the last few years, The Birthday Massacre has proven to be musically all grown up and independent with its own unmistakable music style elegantly executed in every album. The latest release entitled “Superstition” does not fall far from the original musical direction and visual theme.
The first track “Divide” will make you feel comfortable right away. We’re still in the videogame world full of ominous shadows crawling in the dark, but everything feels happy and safe. The omnipresent keyboards layers create a sincere landscape for soft vocals and simple guitar riffs. The dark takes over only for a matter of seconds carrying a raspy voice and an eerie guitar mini solo.
“Diaries” feels sweet like a first date and flows graciously just like a dream. On the vocals Chibi sounds like a perfect dreamy storyteller. Guitars and keyboards never fail to softly entwine without ever overpowering any melody.
The title track holds a mysterious power with slower rhythm and guitar melodies. The major attraction here is embodied by the recurring dark synths theme.
“Rain” is the most romantic and soothing song on this album. The whole musical frame is extremely pleasant and the keyboards concoct a delicate melody full of good vibes.
“Destroyer” fully deserves the listeners’ attention if only because Chibi channels her infamous wicked growls. The rest of the song has a more guitar driven groovy core compared to the other tunes.
If that’s not enough, “The Other Side” is another track where guitars and keyboards work together harmoniously to create that exquisite sinister spine-chilling atmosphere. At the same time, all the elements are held together by an intensely catchy chorus.
“Superstition” might not always hold the creative escapades of some of its well known predecessors, nevertheless it is lovely collection of sweet & creepy songs that make you want to dance and sing along under the moonlight.