Rebel Extravaganza

Heavy Metal And Other Occasional Musics And Cultures

2025

Album Reviews

Album Review: Coffin Feeder – Big Trouble

What do you get when you cross ABORTED, LENG T’CHE, WHEN PLAGUES COLLIDE and a lesser known but equally deserving of praise band named FLEDDY MELCULY? Well, we’re about to find out, as Belgium’s COFFIN FEEDER has taken members of these bands, heaved them into a woodchipper, and now – three years after the aural abuse of Stereo Homicide and Over The Top EPs – cranked out its debut long-player. After a foreboding ‘There Will Be Trouble’, Big Trouble kicks in with the whirling, rusted circular saw blade that is ‘Porkchop Express’, the triple vocal attack of Sven and guitarists […]

Short Sharp Shocks

Avenger Of Blood – Revenge Is My Name

After spreading out 3.5 albums on four labels over the past decade (The .5 happens when you re-record your first album despite it being less than 10 years old. Come on, guys!), AVENGER OF BLOOD returns with Revenge Is My Name on M-Theory Audio. The title track, however, recoils like a turret-mounted .50 cal, reminiscent of early WARBRINGER and LAZARUS A.D., never a bad thing. A death-tinged churn begins ‘Throes Of Temptation’, vocalist/guitarist Sal Lalli spitting out his best Mille Petrozza once the speed kicks in, and ‘Til Death Do We Thrash’ is the ‘Toxic Waltz’-styled anthem every band of […]

Album Reviews

Album Review: Thus Spoke Zarathustra – I’m Done With Self Care, It’s Time For Others’ Harm

The early-mid ‘00s were a weird-ass time for metal. OG metalcore bands (look ‘em up, this ain’t Wikipedia or The Metal Archives) suddenly found themselves being name-dropped by a new pack of hyenas in guyliner that would make Gerard Way wince in discomfort and jeans tighter than Luke Bryan’s. Of course, now, the reason for the tightness of their jeans is that they belonged to their girlfriend. A word on the girlfriends of that era; lonely. Lonely, because these dandy fops were too busy making fag jokes and bro-ing down to pay any attention to them, in search of the […]

Album Reviews

Album Review: Chamber Mage – By Light Of Emerald Gods

Ah, the galloping riff! Steve Harris’ pride and joy, it’s become one of the staples of traditional heavy metal, particularly bands dealing with fantasy and medieval themes. That leads us directly to Colorado’s CHAMBER MAGE, who love swords, sorcery and those galloping riffs. This record oozes both classic metal and high fantasy. Not 100% sure, but I think By Light Of Emerald Gods is a concept album telling one mighty tale. If you love OMEN, MANILLA ROAD and the horribly overlooked MEDIEVAL STEEL, you’re going to be over the moon with CHAMBER MAGE. Once ‘In Battle’ locks into its patented […]

Album Reviews

Album Review: Pyromancer – Absolute Dominion By Fire

So, Kentucky’s PYROMANCER knocked out a demo almost exactly 10 years ago, then apparently went dormant, members Conqueror Horus and Master Of Graveyard Torment becoming more involved in their other musical exploits, only to return last year via a split with Detroit wastebearers PERVERSION. Now beneath the flag of Adirondack Black Mass, the twosome arrive with Absolute Dominion By Fire. Mind, you, of the dozen tracks found here, four are revisitations from the past two releases. Will we be dominated? Absolutely, even? And if so, by fire? ‘Igniting The Sacrificial Pyre’ drags somewhat monotonously at first, synths and a voice […]

Album Reviews

Album Review: Messa – The Spin

Italian doomweavers MESSA have always been reliable, but with the move to Svart Records and release of Close in 2022, they became memorable. A Live At Roadburn followed, and now arrives The Spin, marked by yet another label switch, this time under the Metal Blade imprint. I’ll confess to a bit of trepidation when I see three releases from a band in a row, all on different labels, but MESSA has been around for just over a decade, and this is its fourth LP, so the members have clearly put in the work, and may be simply seeking to be […]

Short Sharp Shocks

Turkey Vulture – Dead To Me [EP]

Ya just gotta give Connecticut’s TURKEY VULTURE props for doing it the right way – honing its sound over 4 EPs and a smattering of singles since 2019, not over-anxious to jump into the album format, when it may never suit them. ‘Jill The Ripper (Heavy Take)’ doesn’t come with the promised “doom’s crushing weight”, but the snarl in the vox of drummer Jim Clegg more than suffice, the tune rampant with dirty punk ‘n’ roll ala VANDALS and CIRCLE JERKS (VI era). The title track finds guitarist/bassist Jessie May joining on vocals and boasts a chorus as catchy as […]

Album Reviews

Album Review: Gates To Hell – Death Comes To All

Of all the new bands trying to cash in on the brutal death/hardcore mash-up trend, this is the worst I’ve heard so far. I’m appalled a record of this low quality is on Nuclear Blast. I know they sign some bad bands to jump on bandwagons, but this is bad right down to the production quality and playing ability. It makes SANGUISUGABOGG and BONGINATOR look like ATHEIST. I like death metal and hardcore when they are primitive and to the point. This is DUMB, not primitive…an onslaught of uninteresting riffs, lobotomized breakdowns that have been done over and over for […]

Album Reviews

Album Review: Rokets – Bad Choices

There’s just something about dirty Scandinavian rock ‘n’ roll. From forefathers HANOI ROCKS to BACKYARD BABIES to countless others, that Sunset Boulevard sound has been mangled and mutated by sheer force of will into something other – something independent of its heritage, created without the media hype engine so treasured and fickle here in the good ol’ US of A. Entering the ring now is ROKETS, with their third attempt at a knockout, Bad Choices. ‘Bad Choices’ gets down to bidness quick and (im)proper, and there’s something of CRANK COUNTY DAREDEVILS and LEGENDARY SHACK SHAKERS in the guitar tone and […]

Short Sharp Shocks

Royal Blunder – Only More Is Enough [EP]

You’ve got four songs and I’ve only got 120 words, ROYAL BLUNDER, so let’s cut to the chase. Where do you get off cranking out a syncopated rocker like ‘The Clock’ right from the start? I’m hearing DANIEL AMOS here, but sweetened with just enough sugar to make the whole thing go down oh, so smooth. And that title track, the fiery guitar lead-in, that’s just uncalled for! Give us a minute to catch up, fellas, our media-addled brains can’t take all these goodtime grooves and positivity at once! The psych/pop of ‘Sherlock Holmes’ bleeds XTC, and ‘Blink’ capping this […]

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