‘Götterspiel: Dunkle Zeiten’, the new album by the southern German RPG melodic death metallers BOSPARANS FALL, has been in the stores since the end of May. With their melodic death metal, influenced by the role-playing game ‘Das Schwarze Auge’ (The Black Eye), the quintet has obviously hit the nerve of the listeners; the debut longplayer and also the live debut at the Aaargh Festival met with positive feedback almost without exception. With the quasi title-track of the album ‘Dunkle Zeiten’ (Dark Times), the band is now releasing a video clip on the YouTube channel of MDD Records for the first time. The album is available as a jewel case in stores and, as a limited DigiPak with alternative artwork in a premium aluminium box, exclusively from the band and the MDD mailorder. Check it out!
ALL LIFE ENDS are hailing from Switzerland and this is their second opus. There are nine songs on this album. The band was founded in 2006 and they play death metal. They released two EP-s and this is their second full length opus. Although they play death metal there are also couple of metalcore and thrash metal influences in their song structures. Considering death metal, ALL LIFE ENDS lean more heavily into American school of death metal, with blistering fast blast beats, thundering fast guitar solos, which contain occasional hooks and catchy melodic short parts, also some atmospheric parts are in the songs, almost progressive death metal, along with moshing grooves like in ‘The Dreamless Void’, the longest song on this record, but in no way boring for a second. Production is brutal and grandiose, courtesy of Dan Swanö at Unisound AB Studio. Vocals are brutal and more guttural, but you can understand what is being sung about in many parts, so that is another plus for me considering this band. This album was written during covid shit lockdowns and pandemics, so one of my personal favorites on this record is ‘Pandemonic’, also song I must mention is ‘Extinction Hours’. This is quality death metal with couple of thrash and metalcore parts thrown in, so enjoy it as I did.
Italian extreme metal scene is vast and fantastic and I am always glad when I discover some new bands and projects from our neighboring country. Crownshard are hailing from Italy, and this is their new opus containing five songs. The music of Crownshard can be described as death metal, it is technically fantastic and tight, but there is more to their music than just that. Lyrically, Crownshard deal with real themes, like depression, death and perdition, raising awareness about ourselves and thus enabling us to fight our inner demons when we need to fight to survive and stay alive in this ever moving today’s world. Besides pummeling death metal with many tempo changes and grooves mixed with blast beats, there are also couple of really fine melodies played with thrash metal and classic heavy metal influence here and there, bordering the music of this band with melodeath. Vocals are growls but quickly changing between screams and more snarling anger and despair, not your usual death metal grunts. My personal favorites are ‘There Is Nothing Left’ and ‘Mankind Has Failed’, but all of the songs are quality death metal played with conviction.
KRAYKULLA-WEBZINE 