Review of The Art of Destruction by Desaster

1. Intro

2. The Art of Destruction

3. Lacerate (With Rans of Doom)

4. The Splendour of the Idols

5. Phantom Funeral

6. Queens of Sodomy

7. At Hell's Horizon

8. Troops of Heathens, Graves of Saints

9. Possessed and Defiled

10. Beyond Your Grace

11. Outro

The black metal band, Desaster, are back with their seventh full length album, The Arts of Destruction. The band was formed in 1988 and the line up, as it has been since returning hiatus, is Satanic on vocals, Infernal on guitar, Odin on bass, an Tormentor on Drums. The album was recorded at ToxoMusic Studios and mixed and mastered at Temple of Disharmony.

Having never heard these guys before, as I haven’t heard of many of the things I review, I must say I was extremely satisfied. Desaster know how to keep old school black metal alive with fast, in your face riffs but can also bring you slow but dark riffs as well. Not to mention the drumming is menacing and is a great addition. The vocals are very evil and demonic as well. I am not going to chose a favourite song off of this album because I think in their own way, each of these songs are amazing. I am glad some of these older black metal bands are still going strong and bringing out new music. If you are a fan of black metal you should check this album out.

Reviews of Master of Brutality and The Second Coming by Church of Misery

Master of Brutality

1. Killifornia (Ed Kemper)

2. Ripping Into Pieces (Peter Sutcliffe)

3. Megalomania (Herbert Mullin)

4. Green River

5. Cities On Flame

6. Master of Brutality (John Wayne Gacy)

7. Boston Strangler (Albert de Salvo)

8. Candy Man (Dean Corll)

9. Lucifer Rising (Live)

The Second Coming

1. I, Motherfucker (Ted Bundy)

2. Soul Discharge (Mark Essex)

3. Red Ripper Blues (Andrei Chikatilo)

4. Filth Bitch Boogie (Aileen Wuornos)

5. One Way…Or Another (Cactus Cover)

6. Candy Man (Dean Coroll)

7. El Topo

8. For Mad Men Only (May Blitz Cover - Extended Version

Church of Misery is a doom/stoner metal band from Tokyo, Japan. I am not sure what to say about these guys, it took me a little while to find their stuff. These two albums Master of Brutality and The Second Coming are re-released of the 2001 and 2004 albums. I am assuming that they are now under Metal Blade Records and that is why the albums are out again. The band is mostly based around songs about serial killers which is interesting. I have read that they are set to play their first concert at this year’s Maryland Deathfest.

In order to make this easier on myself and the readers I decided to just do both albums in one review, since it is basically the same kind of stuff. The sound clips at the beginning of each song are interesting and helps you understand the individual serial killer the song is about. I don’t think I have ever heard a band do doom and stoner metal combined, but Church of Misery did blow me away. The guitar riffs are nice and groovy and next thing you know they throw doom metal at you, which is incredible that they pull it off. Vocals remind me sort of like Phil Anselmo. A few of the songs are on the lengthy side, but the groove coming out of them all the way through is too awesome for length to matter. The only thing that is hard to sit through is the twenty minute, Lucifer Rising. These album are really awesome and I suggest smoking some weed while listening, I didn’t, but it’d be worth it.

Review of Mask of Malice by Lay Down Rotten

1. Death-Chain

2. A Darker Shade of Hatred

3. Nightfall

4. Mask of Malice

5. …And Out Come the Wolves

6. Swallow the Bitterness

7. Hades Resurrected

8. The Devil Grins

9. La Serpenta Canta

10. The Loss

Mask of Malice is Lay Down Rotten’s sixth studio album and third album under Metal Blade Records. They entered Desert-Inn Studio in September 2011 to record the album, the same place they have previously recorded. Mask Of Malice is the first album with new guitarist Daniel “Kensington” Seifert, as Daniel Jakobi left last year due to lack of time dedicated to the band caused by his other job and musical projects. The band has played many festivals such as Summer Breeze Open Air, Fuck The Commerce, and Neurotic Death Fest. They also played with many bands such as Disbelief, Hatesphere, Dismembr, and Neaera.

Having not heard of these before I didn’t know what I was getting into but they proved to be better than I expected. The album brings heavy riffs but also has melodic bits that comes standard in European death metal. The drums are a mix of fast paced pounding and slow breakdown like bits. I’m not in tune with different styles of death metal vocals but they seem quite good. My favourite three tracks are Mask of Malice, …And Out Come the Wolves and Hades Resurrected. They may not be my kind of band, but you like death metal be sure to check out this album!