american  are  a  band  from  Virginia  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black  metal,  sludge,  punk,  industrial  and  noise  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Coping  With  Loss"  which  was  released  by  Sentient  Ruin  Laboratories.

  Drones  and  clean  playing  before  adding  in  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  and  a  fast  and  raw  musical  direction  which  also  brings  in  blast  beats  and  dark  sounding  melodies  and  then  the  music  slows  down  and  adds  some  sludge  influences  into  their  depressive  black  metal  sound  while  they  also  keep  around  the  fast  parts.

  Bass  guitars  have  a  very  powerful  sounding  presence  on  the  album  along  with  the  slower  sections  bringing  in  some  very  heavy  doom/sludge  metal  and  spoken  word  samples  are  also  brought  in  briefly  on  a  couple  of  the  tracks  and  the  band  also  brings  in  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  the  band  also  adds  in  a  good  amount  of  drones  and  harsh  noises  with  the  guitars  and  amps.

  Sound  effects  can  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  they  make  the  music  sound  a  lot  more  experimental  as  well  as  giving  the  album  a  more  underground  industrial  edge  while  the  faster  and  raw  side  of  black  metal  is  the  most  dominant  sound  to  be  heard  on  this  recording  and  they  also  add  in  some  of  the  more  modern  elements  of  this  musical  genre  into  their  sound  at  times,  one  of  the  later  tracks  sees  the  band  stepping  away  from  black  metal  for  awhile  to  create  some  dark  and  evil  sounding  drone  before  making  a  return  back  to  that  direction  as  well  as  sounding  more  raw  and  vicious  as  well  as  adding  in  a  few  seconds  of  acoustic  guitar  playing,  the  last  track  sees  the  band  adding  in  melodic  Gregorian  chants  in  the  background  and  the  song  is  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  goes  for  more  of  an  ambient  noise  direction.

  american  creates  a  very  interesting  sound  with  their  music  with  their  style  being  mostly  in  a  raw  and  depressive  direction  and  they  make  their  sound  more  diverse  by  adding  in  sludge,  doom  metal,  drone  and  harsh  noise  elements,  the  production  has  a  very  dark  and  raw  sound  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark,  violent  and  depressive  themes.

  In  my  opinion  american  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  raw  black  metal,  sludge,  punk,  industrial  and  noise  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Ritual  Suicide"  "Lamb  To  Slaughter"  and  "Solace  in  The  Silence".  8  out  of  10. 

1. Recently you have released a new ep, how would you describe the musical sound of the new recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

We have recorded this time at Traste Cero Studios , the difference between  this record and the old ones is that now we have a sound more appropriate with that we have in our minds. The old recordings were just amateur ones in comparison

2. The bands earlier material was more blackened death thrash and the new ep is more in an old school or more traditional style of black metal, what was the decision behind going into this musical direction?

The idea with this band was taking a different point of view in each recording, but always into the extreme metal stuff. I hate those bands who record the same song with different names in all their releases. I will really get bored working always on the same idea

3. Your song lyrics cover a good amount of satanic, occult and pagan themes, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these topics?

In this EP we use these topics as a provocation and a sample of intolerance against those Judeo-Christian sects who corrupts the natural values and the moral of the human being

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Visions'?

Visions name came from the enormous influence that the Sepultura’s greatest “Morbid Visions” gave to me. At the beginning, the band name would be Morbid Visions, but I prefer using only one word on a name

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

I have good regards of all the shows we have perform, our bass player broke his leg on his first show, that’s the way we want to do the things! I will define our stage performance as “cold and direct”. I hate those stupid frontmans who are always interacting with the public and doing monologues. People goes to the shows to see you playing at live, not to hear your jokes!

6. Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

We’re planning a national tour to present the new Ep. At this moment we have some confirmations, but we can’t say anything more about this. Let’s see what we can do!

7 .The new ep had a cover of Burzum's  "Journey  to the  Stars" what was the decision behind during your own version of this legendary track/

As you have said, it’s a legendary black metal song, and we think it fits perfectly into the atmosphere of this Ep

8. On a worldwide level how was the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?

At this moment there isn’t much demand nor follow up far beyond our country. We hope this recording can change this situation

9. When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We want to spread the words about the new Ep and make some noise at live first. Then, and if we have enough money, we’ll be able to record a full length album to make more chaos! The future is simple, our path is chosen, the extreme way is our way

10. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

The classic ones, from Black Sabbath to Beherit, going on Celtic Frost and Morbid Angel. Right now I’m interesting in very extreme things like Teitanblood, Katharsis… and those bands who are doing that new sound like Malthusion or Bölzer…amazing!!


11. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Thanks a lot for your time and the time of those who have dedicated a few minutes to read this

  Ak-11  are  a  band  from  Australia  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  raw,  melodic  and  pagan  form  of  black/war  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  album  "Once  Upon  A  Time  In  Europa".

  A  very  distorted  sound  starts  off  the  album  before  getting  a  lot  heavier  and  adding  in  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  which  leads  to  a  faster  direction  along  with  blast  beats  and  guitar  leads  and  they  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  adding  a  good  amount  of  melody  into  their  music.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  sound  very  powerful   and  there  is  a  great  amount  of  raw  aggression  in  the  bands  musical  sound  and  after  awhile  deeper  vocals  can  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  album  and  they  bring  in  a  death  metal  feeling  to  the  bands  musical  sound  which  also  shows  up  in  the  riffing  and  blast  beats  at  times and  this  album  goes  for  mostly  a  raw  and  melodic  black  metal  direction.

  On  the  track  "Slava"  you  can  hear  some  world  war  II  samples  and  then  the  next  track  takes  the  music  into  a  more  fast  and  chaotic  war  metal  direction  which  they  also  mix  in  with  the  more  melodic  side  of  black  metal,  on  a  couple  of  the  tracks  also  sees  the  band  add  in  a  small  amount  of  synths  which  gives  the  music  a  more  militant  neo-classical  feeling  before  returning  back  to  a  heavier  direction while  the  synths  do  appear  later  on  briefly  before  going  into  the  last  track.

  Ak-11  remains  true  to  the  musical  direction  that  was  found  on  the  ep  while  also  adding  in  more  melody  and  showing  a  great  amount  of  progress  and  skill  as  musicians,  the  production  sounds  very  powerful  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  a  mixture  of  Russian  and  German  and  cover  war,  carnage,  bloodlust,  Ancient  European  Paganism,  Left  Hand  path  and  Existentialism  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Ak-11  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  raw  and  melodic  black/war  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Cleansing  Stream"  "Sniper  Glory"  "Europa  (Once  Upon  A  Time)"  and  "Europa  (The  Future)".  8/5  out  of  10.  

  Skiddaw  are  a  band  from  the  united  Kingdom  that  plays  a  raw  form  of  occult  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  titled  ep  which  will  be  released  by  SixSixSix Music.

    Rain  and  weather  sounds  start  off  the  ep  before  going  into  a  melodic  black  metal  direction  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sounding  very  powerful  and  a  guitar  lead  and  after  the  intro  the  music  starts  getting  more  heavy  along  with  some  grim  sounding  black   metal  screams  and  the  music  sticks  to  mostly  a  mid  paced  direction.

  On  the  3rd  track  the  music  starts  going  for  a  more  fast  and  raw  black  metal  direction  along  with  some  blast  beats  before  going  into  a  slower  direction  which  adds  an  evil  atmosphere  to  the  music  along  with  a  small  amount  of  death  metal  growls  and  dark  sounding  melodies  and  the  last  track  starts  out  very  fast  before  going  into  a  more  mid  paced  direction  while  it  still  also  has  its  fast  moments  and  blast  beats.  

  Skiddaw  adds  a  lot  of  diversity  into  their  raw  occult  black  metal  sound  with  every  track  having  a  different  sound  to  it,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  and  the  lyrics  cover  the  Mythology  of  Cunbria  and  Demonology.  

  In  my  opinion  Skiddaw  are   a  very  great  sounding  raw  occult  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Skiddaw  Towers"  and  "Even  Titans  Fall".  8  out  of  10.

  Baalberith  are  a  band  from  the  United  Kingdom  that  plays  a  very  technical  form  of  satanic  black  metal  which  also  has  some  death  metal  elements  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Apparition  Of  Skulls"  which  was  released  by  SixSixSix  Music.

  A  very  fast  and  technical  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  black  metal  screams  and  you  can  also  hear  a  bit  of  death  metal  in  their  musical  sound  along  with  a  good  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  after  awhile  the  band  starts  adding  more  melody  into  their  musical  sound.

  When  guitar  solos  are  added  into  the  music  they  bring  in  some  influences  from  the  darker  side  of  early  90's  death  metal  along  with  some  melodies  that  remind  me  of  early  Rotting  Christ  and  the  band  also  have  some  screams  that  use  both  deep  and  high  pitched  elements  along  with  a  very  dark  and  grim  feeling  and  you  can  hear  a  decent  amount  of  rawness  in  the  faster  sections  of  the  music.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  some  of  the  riffing  having  some  modern  metal  elements  being  added  into  the  sound  at  times  and  they  also  make  each  song  sound  different  from  each  other  while  the  musical  style  always  remains  in  a  black/death  metal  direction  along  with  the  slower  parts  adding  in  a  heavy  doom/death  metal  influence  and  as  the  albums  progresses  more  growls  are  added  into  the  music  and  the  blast  beats  also  get  more  brutal  and  the  last  track  sees  the  band  adding  in  some  thrash  style  riffing  along  with  some  spoken  word  samples.

  Baalberith  brings  a  lot  of  diversity  in  their  musical  sound  taking  the  grim  and  raw  side  of   satanic black  metal  and  making  it  sound  more  technical  and  melodic  along  with  some  modern,  death  and  doom  metal  influences,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Satanism  and  Anti  Christian  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Baalberith  are  a  very  great  sounding  technical  and  satanic  black/death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Quest  For  Satan"  "Bloodshed"  and  "Killing  On  Impulse".  8  out  of  10.