Prong - Zero Days
“Thirty years into their existence, Prong have crossed over so many times that the knots they’ve created have ensured they’re knitted firmly into the fabric of metal history. It’s been a tempestuous ride – frontman Tommy Victor, like his contemporary Page Hamilton of Helmet, is the only original and consistent member – but Zero Days, Prong’s 12th album, is a focused and determined work with a fiery heart. Their thrash roots, gnarled and twisted, wind their way around everything they do here – particularly on the seething, full-pelt maelstrom of Forced Into Tolerance, with its beefy, pit-friendly breakdown that bloodies noses from 20 paces.”
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Abhorrent Decimation - The Pardoner
“The Pardoner is everything you could wish for from a group of this ilk in 2017. As the haunting piano of opener Soothsayer gives way to the first of many thickly textured riffs, it’s obvious that AD are out to turn all their potential into genuine quality.”
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Less Art - Strangled Light
“Less Art’s supergroup status gives them a pedigree to live up to, and their raw, depressive debut record does this and more. Driven by the impassioned howls of Curl Up And Die frontman Mike Minnick and the rhythms of Thrice’s Breckenridge brothers, it’s an album that finds its bread and butter in blending ever-building musical power with vitriolic lyricism.”
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Venomous Maximus - No Warning
“Fixing their gaze back on the early 80s, Gregg Higgins’ funereal post-punk vocals invest the tracks with an icy foreboding that steers just clear of camp. Belters like the title track and closer Sea Of Sleep bristle with chugging NWOBHM riffs and moody swagger, as if Saxon and The Sisters Of Mercy had holed up in a candlelit basement, drinking absinthe and jamming ’til dawn.”
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Dvne - Asheran
“After releasing a brace of warmly received EPs, Scotland based Dvne (pronounced “Dune”) unveil their debut album and it’s every bit as epic as anyone could have hoped for. Weaving a tale centred around the return of an empire that was believed to have been lost thousands of years ago, it’s a sci-fi-infused, utterly crushing 60 minutes.”
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Make Them Suffer - Worlds Apart
“Perth sextet Make Them Suffer legitimised their symphonic deathcore tag with the release of 2010’s blistering Lord Of Woe EP and their full-length debut Neverbloom’s propensity for eloquent gloom. These Antipodeans’ penchant for blending nihilistic beauty with rapid-fire bludgeoning has remained a fundamental part of their sound, but dynamically, there’s an unmistakable shift at work here – aside from the obvious absence of keyboard/ vocalist Louisa Burton.”
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Rings Of Saturn - Ultu Ulla
“For years, Rings Of Saturn have been batting off rumours that they record their absurdly complex tech-death at half speed and can’t actually play it live. It’s not true, of course; one of their gigs will leave you in no doubt regarding their technical proficiency. In spite of the whispers, the Bay Area quartet have developed into an impressive proposition. Ultu Ulla is a world away from the band’s breakdown-heavy 2010 debut, Embryonic Anomaly, which focused on brute strength rather than brains, their latest showcasing a band who have now upped their songwriting chops and sonic vision.”
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Loviatar - Loviatar
“Named after a mythological death goddess, Canadians Loviatar retreated into the woods to record their debut full-length, summoning a loose, natural approach to their obvious post-rock/doom influences. They effectively imbue the first three, thematically connected tracks with the restless, undulating characteristics of the Stygian Wyrm on which they’re based. Opener Nascent’s verdant expanse of lush magical flourishes, organic sounding drums and twinkling acoustic guitars build to the voluminous riffs and solos of Discordant.”
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Nexul - Paradigm Of Chaos
“Nexul’s elemental dirge harkens back to USBM’s satisfyingly primitive roots of Profanatica and Demoncy but with a more precise hostility and accuracy that takes the sound to a more accessible level. Sharing the same OTT intensity of bands like Black Witchery and Blasphemy but harbouring a more subtle balance of melody with madness, Paradigm Of Chaos cultivates an atmospheric mystique as opposed to straight-up sonically challenging bombardment.”
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The best new metal albums you can buy this week
