Black Cobra, Corpus Christii, Vader, and more

Up at Decibel, I have reviews of Blotted Science (new project of Ron Jarzombek), Devian (new project of Legion, ex-Marduk), and Rigor Sardonicous (slower-than-slow dooooom), as well as a feature on Portuguese black metallers Corpus Christii, whose recent record Rising is sick-sick-sick. The print version (#41, At the Gates cover) also has my live review of Neurosis/Earth/Saviours on NYE.

Black Cobra - Red Tide
Corpus Christii - Stabbed

At Metal Injection, I have reviews of The Great Deceiver (Tomas Lindberg's almost-nu-metal project), Polish behemoths Vader, mighty SF duo Black Cobra, Hot Topic pinups Bullet for My Valentine, and Strapping Young Lad clone The Arcane Order.

The latter's album is noteworthy, as it is a digital-only release in the US - from Metal Blade. CD's are available in Europe, but not in America. Metal Blade must have done a cost-benefit analysis and decided that CD's generally weren't worth manufacturing. Instead, the label has outsourced distribution to iTunes, Napster, et al., not even selling MP3's on its own site (yet). Metal Blade is the first major metal label I've seen do this - but I'm sure it won't be the only one.

Animosity, Impaled, Marblebog, Hirax, etc.

Last year, as a goodwill gesture to hometown fans, Animosity played a free show in a San Francisco park. I wasn't there, but the event was captured on video (see above). It's so San Francisco, from the decidedly mixed crowd to the incongruity of death metal outside on a rainy afternoon. Dig the guitarists' matching Stryper-esque Alexi Laiho Flying V's. The video's sound seems to come not from the gig, but from a demo. I've posted the final version of the song, "You Can't Win," from Animosity's Animal, which I've reviewed here.

Animosity - You Can't Win
Impaled - G.O.R.E.
Marblebog - I Am the Forest Heart (excerpt)

At Metal Injection, I've reviewed South Carolina deathcore-rs Through the Eyes of the Dead and Hungarian black metallers Marblebog. At Decibel, I've reviewed Bay Area goremasters Impaled and Danish death metallers Corpus Mortale. I've also started writing for All Music Guide, so the sidebar gallery will see more flux now. Of the latest batch of records I reviewed, the highlight was Hirax's The New Age of Terror, my favorite post-'80s thrash album.

Also new in the sidebar, some additions to the blogroll - Driftglass (aka Forrest Norvell, an astute musical polyglot), I'm the Most Important Fucking Person in the World (focusing on the heavy and hairy), MetalJazz (does as advertised), Metal Jew (aka Keith Kahn-Harris, author of Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge), and Umlaut (aka Brian Lew, who did the legendary Umlaut zine; he was there back in thrash's heyday, and his blog has amazing firsthand accounts of Metallica, Slayer, and Ruthie's Inn).