Category Archives: Reviews

REVIEW: Streams – Streams (single)

April 23, 2017 darkartconspiracy Leave a comment

REVIEW: Streams – Streams (single) by Carina Lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy

Epic death metallers Streams are a brutal multi-talented duo from Finland. They have just unleashed their first self-titled single, which opens dramatically with a horror film vibe effect, instantly putting you on edge, before dark fast guitars come in, greeted by fierce growled vocals, which fire speedily throughout. This is a blistering death metal offering, which is highly melodic and ends as it started, coming full circle and hitting you hard with every last beat.

This is a brilliant debut song and leaves you exhausted, but hungry for more extreme sounds from Streams, who in just one strike prove they are a band to keep an eye.

Score: 4/5

MEMBERS:
ATLAS – vocals, bass, guitar
TURBONUKLEAR – vocals, keys, drums

The single ‘Streams’ is out now (released 14/4/17) on Spotify, Itunes, Apple Music, Deezer, Google Play through Inverse Records.

Links:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/STREAMSmetal

Twitter: http://twitter.com/STREAMSmetal

Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/album/4EINRW46NwS7eCwlRARJrk

ITunes: http://itunes.apple.com/fi/album/streams-single-single/id1225550152?l=fi

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REVIEW: Seething Akira – Backlash (Single)

April 20, 2017 darkartconspiracy 1 Comment

REVIEW: Seething Akira – Backlash (Single) by Carina Lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy

Phpoto by Luke Bateman

Alternative hard rock ravers Seething Akira from Portsmouth, UK have unleashed their first massive anthemic single ‘Backlash’ featuring vocals from Olly Simmons of The Quemists, taken from their anticipated debut album out June 2017. The song is bold and full of angst with great lyrics like, “My blood vessels burst as I scream and curse, what have we become? What have we all done! This is my backlash!” it’s lyrics like this that help make it a live hit. It is addictive and infectiously catchy, aided by their strong and well executed use of electronic synths. I had the unforgettable experience of seeing them recently perform ‘Backlash’ live, and it was the perfect singalong party anthem, that got the crowd going wild. They are a band that need to be seen to be believed, especially in the live environment, where they truly thrive, being in their element. It’s no surprise that they have already supported the likes of Skindred, Hacktivist and Don Broco. With this hit single and their awaited debut on the way, Seething Akira look to cause a big commotion in 2017.

Score: 4/5

Video link to ‘Backlash’:

‘Backlash’ was produced by vocalist Charlie Bowes, Rhys Fulber & Jim Davies, mastered by Greg Reely (Canada), and features Olly Simmons on vocals.

Live photo caption: A brilliant shot of Seething Akira capturing their mental set at Mammothfest Presents show with headliners Feed The Rhino (1/4/17) taken by Luke Bateman.

Upcoming shows:

26th May, Breaking Bands Festival, Bromsgrove
27th May, Alma Inn, Bolton
24th June, La Fetes De La Musique, Belgium

http://www.seethingakira.com/
https://www.facebook.com/seethingakira
https://twitter.com/SEETHINGAKIRA

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REVIEW: Death Blooms – Death Blooms EP

April 16, 2017 darkartconspiracy Leave a comment

REVIEW: Death Blooms – Death Blooms EP by Carina Lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy

Alternative UK metal quartet Death Blooms look to turn heads with their impressive self-titled debut EP.

First song ‘Hate:Die’ has a manic vibe, especially with sinister whispered sections repeatedly saying “Then hate, then die” throughout. Featuring sonic edgy hard hitting guitars, and a superb melodic clean vocal chorus mixed with fierce screams from frontman Paul Burrows, this is an electrifying dark introduction to Death Blooms.

Next up is the anthemic ‘Last Ones’ which is a mighty offering with massive guitars, fast drums and plenty of depth, it simply soars, especially through its extremely catchy chorus, which seems to be their forte and they waste no time asserting this.

Lead single ‘I’m Dead’ strikes even harder, turning the brutality up a notch and firing off at blistering speeds, again with an urgent frantic feel driving it and sublime singalong sections, making this the perfect song to be at the forefront of this release.

Final offering ‘Sick’ rampages on and is infectious, it will have you head banging in a heartbeat. The effective use of contrasting and dual vocals is executed wonderfully yet again, as seen in the EP’s entirety. They close this stunning debut EP in a very dynamic and high impact way, with the song over before you know it, firing rapidly and leaving you eager for more.

In just four songs they manage to leave you in awe, with their exhilarating well rounded first release, they may have already established themselves as one of the best new modern metal acts going, which is a serious accolade for a debut. Death Blooms most definitely have a bright and expansive future ahead.

Score: 5/5

https://www.facebook.com/dthblms/

https://twitter.com/dthblms

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REVIEW: GraViL- No More Forgiveness

April 15, 2017 darkartconspiracy Leave a comment

REVIEW: GraViL- No More Forgiveness by Carina Lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy

London based Melodic death metallers GraViL return with their follow up album to their successful debut ‘Thoughts Of A Rising Sun’ with more bite and depth with punishing new album, ‘No More Forgiveness’. The album deals with some heavy and personal issues such as loss, but tries to find strength amongst the negativity.

Opening song ‘Detonate’ gets things off to a colossal start, being explosive from start to finish, delivering a shattering fast paced tech metal offering, which is seriously melodic, aided by its atmospheric ambience.

‘I Am The Blood’ rages full speed ahead with wild impressive guitar work, and with the clean vocals mixed with harsh screamed sections, it makes for a perfect metal anthem, which is bound to go down a storm in the live environment. This is a must hear monstrous track which highlights their musicianship and craft further.

‘Plagues, Thieves and Murderers’ possesses a massive sound while ‘Choke In Silence’ is brimming with angst, and features slick and polished guitar work, making this one brutal hit.

‘Fractured, Divided’ is immediately grabs your attention with its melodic texture and definitely stands out. It displays a different dynamic and almost symphonic sound, especially with the help of Theresa Smith of Metaprism, whose vocals compliment frontman, Grant Stacey’s wonderfully, making this one unforgettable and powerful song, which deals with the very tragic topic of Stacey losing a baby in 2012, as you can imagine it is highly heartfelt.

Lead track ‘Decommissioned’ has an eerie atmospheric intro which builds up, before it fully erupts and is fuelled by anger, with crushing riffs and massive rhythms, packing a hefty punch both musically and lyrically, as it deals with betrayal experienced by the frontman on a wide scale.

Final and heaviest offering ‘One Eyed King’ certainly delivers the final blow, being far reaching and unstoppable, highlighting some of the hardest hitting riffs, in what is the most formidable way to end this speed ridden frenzy of an album.

All ten tracks are meticulously structured, emotionally charged and packed with brutality, and delivered at blistering speeds. There is endless amounts of passion and energy throughout which sees it soar and makes them a deadly and impressive unit. With just two albums under their belts, they are already a force to be reckoned with, and not a band to bury amongst the ever expanding metal genre.

Score: 5/5

‘No More Forgiveness’ is self-released on the 5th May 2017

23rd June – COVENTRY, Arches Venue (w/ Metaprism)

More tour dates to be announced soon!

www.gravilmetal.com

https://www.facebook.com/gravil/

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REVIEW: Emptybrook – Self titled EP

April 15, 2017 darkartconspiracy Leave a comment

REVIEW: Emptybrook – Self titled EP by Carina lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy

Emptybrook are a sludge metal act from Finland who formed in 2015. They are inspired by Finnish low budget movies from the 1970’s and 80’s and the short summers in their home country. They inject an organic and raw sound into their sound and showcase this in their debut self-titled EP…

Opener ‘Repeat’ pulls you in with bouncy groovy tuneful riffs, accompanied by crashing drums, and belligerent vocals that are short and make a high impact. This is a hard hitting and surprisingly melodic introduction to the band…

The brilliant comically titled, ‘The Grand King Of Fuckery’ is heavy as hell, with its stomping sludge sounds offering a complimentary backdrop to the evil harsh vocals – this will surely have you head banging and will be a great extreme live anthem.

‘A Song For The End Of Days’ features drawn out sinister guitars, and sounds like something serious is going down. This is the most beastly song so far with vocalist, Ollijuhani sounding very pissed off and fed up. This has a slower pace, driven by a heavy rhythm that is almost chilled out, in contrast to the full on vocals, and finishes on some nice ambient guitar work, making it memorable.

The winner for funniest titled song goes to ‘Smoking Weed With Numbskull Emptybrook’ poking fun at themselves, and not being too serious lyrically. Initially they look to cause your ears distress with a high pitched alarming sound, before it batters you with its heavy sludge weight. It turns out to be rather upbeat sounding musically for this genre, due to its tone and fast pace, giving it a lighter vibe in this short offering.

Closing song, ‘Hit The Wall Or Hit The Ground’ takes things down a notch, before picking up to deliver a pummelling final blow to end this debut EP.

This is a solid and rather enjoyable EP, the band should be proud of their inception, especially with them getting the right balance of humour, seriousness and melodies to soften the harshness of the genre, making it must hear for sludge metal fans.

Score: 3.5 / 5

Emptybrook’s Self-titled debut cassette/digital release is released on April 17th 2017.

https://www.facebook.com/Emptybrook

https://twitter.com/emptybrook

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REVIEW: Tethra – Like Crows For The Earth

April 13, 2017 darkartconspiracy Leave a comment

REVIEW: Tethra – Like Crows For The Earth by Carina Lawrence / Dark Art Conspiracy

Italian doom metal act Tethra formed in 2008 and released their first full length debut ‘Drown Into The Sea’ in 2013, which was a concept album focused on water and continued the theme started on their first EP ‘At The Gates Of Doom’, about a passage between life and death. Now in 2017 they are back with their sophomore full length ‘Like Crows For The Earth’, which was recorded and mixed by Matt Stancioiu (Labyrinth) and mastered by Greg Chandles (Esoteric). They are ready to take their sound to the next level and show how they have evolved since their debut…

The intro ‘Resilience’ is positive yet sorrowful and sets the scene wonderfully for what is to come, being very melodic and tempting, leaving you eager to hear more. It paves the way for first full track, ‘Transcending Thanatos’ which picks up where it left off before frontman, Clode Tethra demonstrates his versatile vocals, from dark growls to melodic charismatic clean vocals, which is quite alluring and stands out in the doom genre, with an gothic vibe shining through. The instrumentation accompanies the tones brilliantly, from dark gloomy moments to hopeful acoustic sections.

Instrumental ‘Prelude to Sadness’ helps create the desired atmosphere and offers a break in between songs and sees us arrive at, ‘Springtime Melancholy’ which is extremely ambient and rather beautiful, with Clode using his vocals well against the vibrant instruments. There is a great balance of dark and light, which is intelligently structured and makes a high impact, going from serene to head banging worthy moments, as well as a full blown doom rage thrown in to keep you on your toes. This is a stand out track, and a great unconventional soundtrack or anthem for Spring.

‘Deserted’ introduces a more exotic sound initially, which goes into dark sounding sonic riffs which drive it, and offer plenty of hard hitting rhythms throughout. This may well be one of the heaviest songs featured so far, as it contains more screamed growls, alongside the signature gothic doom vocals. The stripped back interlude ‘Subterranean’ is well placed and is easily Clode’s best vocal performance, with elegant acoustic guitar as backup, giving it a sinister but flourishing sound. ‘The Groundfeeder’ focuses on the heavier side, tying in with ‘Deserted’ and keeps the momentum going…

‘Synchronicity of Life and Decay’ sees some of the most ambient instrumentation, including a slick tuneful guitar solo, in what is their shortest song, showing they can deliver a quick hard blow. While ‘Earthless’ soars on, with the band in their element with fast paced melodies, going between slower calm parts and then effortlessly going full swing again. This is another stand out track for me.

Saving their title track for last, ‘Like Crows For The Earth’ truly encompasses all their best characteristic sounds, being a perfect and solid representation of their album and sound, making it a fine choice to end on.

Considering this is rooted in doom and death, this is a joy to listen to, as it is surprisingly diverse, melodic and positive for this genre. ‘Like Crows For The Earth’ highlights that Tethra aren’t afraid to think outside of the box, and for their efforts they should be more widely accepted, as this is more accessible than most doom/death metal offerings, giving it the edge. Most of the songs are around six or seven minutes long, but all very well crafted and consistent throughout, progressing naturally along the way. The use of instrumentals interspersed shows their musicianship further, and aids their more sonic and consuming sound, which is layered nicely to balance it out, and gives them their unique sound. If you are a fan of gothic doom/death metal this is a must, but even if you aren’t you may be in for a nice unexpected treat!

Score: 4/5

Tracklist for ‘Like Crows For The Earth’:

Resilience (Intro)
02. Transcending Thanatos
03. Prelude to Sadness
04. Springtime Melancholy
05. Deserted
06. Subterranean (Interlude)
07. The Groundfeeder
08. Entropy
09. Synchronicity of Life and Decay
10. Earthless