Vinili

More than half a century into its life, what exactly is heavy metal? Is it a kind of belief system? Is it something to be observed as a relic, or an exhibit in a museum? Or is it, to paraphrase Christopher Lee’s Due de Richeleau in The Devil Rides Out “A living force, which can strike at any moment of the night”?

Needless to say, SPELL, Vancouver’s next-level metal magicians, have plenty of thoughts on the matter. And as far as they’re concerned, heavy metal is something that needs to evolve to stay vibrant and exciting. This has been the fuel for their fifth album, the brashly confident Wretched Heart. What’s more, this relentless evolutionary momentum has led to them creating their strongest record to date - a thunderous celebration of individualism and eccentricity which stalks its nocturnal realm with savage finesse and beguiling charm.

“Heavy metal can often be a regressive genre, almost by definition. But it doesn’t have to be!” emphasises the band’s singer. bassist and co-pilot Cam Mesmer, “I think that getting set in your ways is death. You have to be open to learning from new influences, or you’re washed up and a caricature of yourself. I consider SPELL to be a heavy metal band, and therefore whatever music we make, will therefore be heavy metal, rather than the other way around, where you try to make your band fit into whatever narrow niche you think heavy metal is supposed to sound like”.

Therefore whilst Wretched Heart is possessed of no shortage of stirring harmony guitars, blazing solos and foot-on-monitor bravura, it also delves into fresh psychic terrain, building on the gothic flourishes that emboldened 2022’s Tragic Magic and embracing an emotional resonance that elevates its viciously catchy songs into the stratosphere. Central to this is the chemistry of the new SPELL line-up, which consolidates the duo of Cam and drummer/guitarist/co-vocalist Al Lester with keyboardist/guitarist Gabriel Tenebrae and lead guitarist Jeff Black. Having honed this incarnation through touring with the likes of Green Lung, Wytch Hazel and Angel Witch, they’ve forged a union which throws the band firmly from the realm of retro chic into a new, bolder direction which, in the words of Baudelaire, extracts the eternal from the ephemeral.

“I feel that the core of SPELL is more of a feeling or an atmosphere than a specific sound, and by the time a song goes through our filter it always sounds like us anyhow.” reasons Cam. “I’ve never really cared for happy songs. Excited, maybe. Desperation. adrenaline. melancholy, but in a wild and passionate way”.

All of these attributes and more are to be found herein. Aided and abetted by long-time collaborator Felix Fung on mixing desk and “fifth Beatle” duties, and resplendent in a sleeve by macabre visionary Adam Burke; Wretched Heart is a glorious testimony to a band ready to transcend its influences in search of fresh glory. “Lilac”, the album’s lead single (which also features a guest guitar solo from former Spirit Adrift, Carcass and Angel Witch man Tom Draper) is their most addictive and bittersweet moment to date, channelling both stadium-sized passion and wistful longing. “Take My Life” is an existential mid-paced stomper with a chorus that a Spandex-clad ‘80s warrior would kill for yet an emotional depth that they might be perplexed by.

“Oubliette” meanwhile tackles the feeling of being trapped under the wheels of capitalism with bleak fortitude, and the gloriously stirring finale title track maps out a curious hinterland where Maiden-esque gallantry can share space with Kraftwerk-style vocoder stylings.

Having previously dealt heavily with the mystical and fantastical, Wretched Heart also showcases a new kind of emotional directness, reflecting the band’s own personal lives, as Cam attests “I challenge all lyricists: don’t be a coward! Whatever you’re feeling, have the courage to write about it! Being afraid to be cringe is the worst disaster to befall art”

 “I’m always looking for that subconscious, under-the-skin feeling that we all got when listening to our first favourite bands in high school, where it’s just pure and exciting and takes hold of you” he reckons. “I’ll always worship Maiden, Sabbath and Priest, but I’d hate to be that guy who just goes back to putting on the same records every day. There is always new ground to be broken by those willing to risk it. I hope we succeeded in writing a catchy, exciting, personal record, which also pisses off a few of the more rigid traditionalists”.

Wretched Heart, in all its gory glory, thus embodies a very vital paradox - a record made by true believers who yearn for catharsis beyond. The oxymoron of anthems forged from steel, yet with a very human heart. Even the most cynical bystander will likely struggle not to be bewitched.

This album is for anyone going through it” summarises Cam, “Anyone who’s not afraid to lay it all out in the open and feel something real!

Formed in the crucible of 2023, Finland's RITUALHAMMER emerge as a formidable force, drawing members from the legacies of Riivaus, Sacrificium Carmen, Mörbid Vomit, Licht Des Urteils, Coraxul, and Wömit Angel among others. While the majority of these members' background centers around black metal, their sound here in RITUALHAMMER is squarely within the most barbaric, violent expressions of death metal. In fact, their self-applied handle is APOCALYPTIC EVIL METAL.

And such is exactly what you'll be confronted with on RITUALHAMMER's debut album, Grand Pestilential Flame, now finding physical release courtesy of WEREWOLF. Reminding of many and no one, this nine-song / 28-minute statement of ripping, south-of-Heaven death metal begins its assault with no warning nor with no quarter given. Both frantic and finessed, RITUALHAMMER here tempt the corners of chaos with their churning angularity, but their just-tight-enough execution exudes all-too-tangible physicality that's a fist in the face of over-processed / punched-in "death metal." Likewise, their songwriting retains just enough linearity to latch onto and then many a diabolical construct is rubbed raw and rudely spat out, altogether making Grand Pestilential Flame a throwback to the ancient underground. As such, this band and record are highly recommended for maniacs of Order From Chaos, VOMITOR, Peru's Mortem, Germany's Desaster, and even earliest Deicide.

The album With No Human Intervention, released in 2003, is considered by many fans and critics to be Aborym’s creative peak. It is a complex work that blends the violence of black metal with industrial rhythms, digital sampling, and extreme electronic elements.

The album is dedicated to Jon Nödtveidt (frontman of Dissection) and to Bard “Faust” Eithun.

Line-up and Musicians
Attila Csihar: Lead vocals (Mayhem).
Malfeitor Fabbri: Guitars and synths.
Seth Teitan: Guitars.
Mick Kenney (Irrumator): Programmed drums (Anaal Nathrakh).

Collaborations and Guests
The album features several collaborations, with lyrics and performances by:
Bard "Faust" Eithun: Lyrics (tracks 2, 6).
Nattefrost: Lyrics and vocals (track 13).
Kvarforth: Additional vocals (Shining).
Sasrof: Lyrics (Diabolicum).

Limited edition of 199 copies on white vinyl with orange and black splatter

Conceived in solitude and wrought by Solace alone, "An Oath Undone" marks the latest invocation of Forlorn Citadel as a hermetic monument to decay, memory, and the deliberate erosion of purpose. Eschewing collaboration and concession, the album unfolds as a single consciousness fracturing inward, its compositions shaped by medieval ruin, funereal restraint, and a reverence for absence as much as sound. Rather than offering resolution, "An Oath Undone" lingers in suspension, tracing the slow unbinding of sworn ideals and the hollow resonance they leave behind, like vows whispered into collapsed stone. In this work, Solace does not document loss so much as ritualize it, sealing Forlorn Citadel further from the present world and into a timeless, inward-facing realm where honor survives only as echo and ash.

Limited edition of 199 copies on green/yellow marble vinyl

First press gone sold out in a matter of a few weeks, now in presale a 2nd press with rather different features!

Second press comes in fact in gatefold sleeve and two different vinyl colors: oxblood or crystal clear! 

 
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Stillamentum marks Gorrch’s long-awaited return, as well as the first collaboration between the duo and Avantgarde Music. Stillamentum is a full-length album steeped in claustrophobic intensity, dissonant chord structures, and relentless sonic tension. From punishing tremolo riffs and blasting drumming to cavernous production that evokes suffocating atmospheres, the record channels the band’s obsession with sound as ritual and catharsis. Gorrch push further into darkness with an unwavering commitment to raw emotion and existential dread, crafting a labyrinth of shadows and pain.

First press gone sold out in a matter of a few weeks, now in presale a 2nd press with rather different features!

Second press comes in fact in gatefold sleeve and two different vinyl colors: oxblood or crystal clear! 

 
----------------------------------
Stillamentum marks Gorrch’s long-awaited return, as well as the first collaboration between the duo and Avantgarde Music. Stillamentum is a full-length album steeped in claustrophobic intensity, dissonant chord structures, and relentless sonic tension. From punishing tremolo riffs and blasting drumming to cavernous production that evokes suffocating atmospheres, the record channels the band’s obsession with sound as ritual and catharsis. Gorrch push further into darkness with an unwavering commitment to raw emotion and existential dread, crafting a labyrinth of shadows and pain.