Lightless Moor – “The Poem – Crying My Grief to A Feeble Dawn” (2013)

Label: Dreamcell 11/Wormholedeath/Aural Music

Review by Tony Cannella

From Italy, the Gothic Doom Metal band Lightless Moor formed in 2001. After their initial EP “Renewal” was released in 2006, they recently signed to the up-and-coming label WormHoleDeath and it is through that label that they have released their long awaited epic debut, “The Poem – Crying My Grief to a Feeble Dawn”. With a name like Lightless Moor and judging by some of the song titles, it is easy to see that lyrically they explore the darker side of life and the music provides the perfect soundtrack.

The ominously eerie intro segues into the heavy doom-laden opening track “The Lyrics of the Journey”. Lightless Moor utilizes two lead vocalists. Continue reading »

Natalia Alvane Sibilskaya & Alexio Sunwalter – Sunwalter

Interview by Vard Aman

Sunwalter – an Extreme Metal band from Moscow who have recently released their debut album, “SETI Evidence”. I caught up with their vocalists: Natalia, to talk about her singing career and the projects she has been and is involved with (such as Pesante, who also have a new EP out, called “Overplayed”); and Alexio, to talk about “SETI Evidence” and all things Sci-fi; and a few other topics too. At the time of this interview, the members of Sunwalter that featured on “SETI Evidence” had just parted ways; Alexio will continue with Sunwalter and Natalia will continue with Pesante.

Natalia: You know, I’ve been loving singing since childhood. As my mother says I tried to sing some tunes even when I was two. Then in high school I used to sing in all amateur concerts. At that time I was always preparing some songs of rock or metal bands to sing in front of audience. Continue reading »

Angist – “Circle of Suffering” EP (2011)

Independent Release

Review by Luisa Mercier

Angist come from Iceland and play extreme metal, a mix of death and black. They are one of the most promising acts in the genre and it is not by chance that they come from that far island. Even though small Iceland has a real musical treasure, just think of the stars Bjork or Sigur Ros or smaller realities like Kontinuum or Solstafir. The music they play is not really that original, but it’s well played and conveys the imagery of cold, distant lands covered in ice. Vocalist/guitarist Edda Tegeder Óskarsdóttir is a nice, blond girl that belts out harsh, deep growls, you will never say it is a female voice. Continue reading »

Sunwalter – “SETI Evidence” (2013)

Label : Grailight Productions

Review by Vard Aman

2013 is off to a very promising start on the Russian/CIS Femme Metal scene with some great releases scheduled and some already released. Here is one I wasn’t expecting, so it came as quite a pleasant surprise (thanks to Olga Salikhova for pointing me in their direction). Sunwalter has been described as Extreme Melodic Metal, and their debut album, “SETI Evidence” has, as one might expect from the title, a Space / Sci-fi / Sci-fi fantasy theme to it. It’s more than just a theme however: “SETI Evidence” has a general Sci-fi feel and atmosphere throughout the album, and it’s not really something I can describe very easily, you have to hear it. Sci-fi themes and soundscapes have long been prominent in the realm of Progressive Metal – Arjen Lucassen‘s various projects at the forefront – but I suddenly find myself a little stumped when it comes to such themes and soundscapes in more extreme forms of Metal: “Nexus Polaris” era The Kovenant (then known as Covenant) springs immediately to mind (and what an album that was!); and less well known, “Beneath an Alien Sky” era Mindcrime (then known as Prometheus). Sunwalter‘s “SETI Evidence”, being a greater mixture of styles wanders somewhere in between those two, although mostly closer to the “Nexus Polaris” end of the scale. Sunwalter‘s vocalists, however, are much better than either of the aforementioned bands. Continue reading »

AraPacis – “Netherworld” (2012)

Label : Ravenheart Music

Review by Tony Cannella

The Montreal, Canada based progressive, gothic metal band AraPacis were formed in 2003. In 2006 they released their debut “So Many Leapers” and followed that up in 2009 with “Consequences of Dreams”. On their first two albums they made it clear that they have a wide range of influences. AraPacis returns with their third album. So without further adieu, let’s enter the “Netherworld”.

“End of the Line” kicks things off with an infectious and melodic guitar riff. Lead vocalist Lizzie Fyre alternates between a clean singing voice and an extreme style. She does that just about as well as anyone, it is not a technique that is overused, she only does this on a couple of songs. “Horror Show” is a straight-forward song, based around a simplistic heavy metal riff and the high vocals of Lizzie Fyre. “Lord of the Clouds” is next and it is reminiscent of Swedish doom metallers Candlemass. It’s definitely got a slow, heavy and doomy vibe to it, except for the thrashy part near the end. At 7-minutes, this is the longest song and my favorite. Other highlights: “Unbirth”, the great ballad “Beautifully Blind” and the closing instrumental “Dark Days Ahead”. For the most part, “Netherworld” maintains a good hard rock and metal pace, while also veering off into Gothic, Doom and Progressive territories at times.

I’m not sure where this will stack up compared to their previous material, but “Netherworld” does maintain a level of consistency that their die-hard fan base should love. AraPacis are fast becoming one of the best bands out of the Canadian metal scene. Continue reading »