Cathedral’s Creeping Death

Death metal had been well established for years by the early 90s. The genre was rapidly becoming an arms race of technicality with many bands attempting to use studio trickery to make records far beyond their musical ability in attempt to compete with their best contemporaries, e.g. Morbid Angel. Many brought in hired shredder studio musicians like James Murphy with drum tracks copy and pasted together onto tape from drum samples and “played” live with triggers activating those same pre-recorded samples at the slightest touch. At the same time, good grindcore bands were turning into second-rate death metal ones or worse, lame “melodic hardcore” which turned hardcore punk aesthetics into slit your wrists whine pop.

Lee Dorrian, vocalist of Napalm Death on the b-side of Scum and From Enslavement to Obliteration, was disgusted by Napalm Death writing material incorporating the worst, bouncy hit people aspects of death metal in an attempt to reach a wider audience and quit the band in 1989. He soon formed Cathedral with Gaz Jennings and Mark Griffiths over a shared love of older heavy metal bands such as Black Sabbath, Candlemass, and Witchfinder General. Demos and an album on Dorrian’s old label Earache quickly followed.

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Sanctuaire Readying Feu Sacré

French Canadian Viking-themed black metal/ambient band Sanctuaire announced on their Facebook page that they are in the final stages of mixing their upcoming record, Feu Sacré (Sacred Fire). Hopefully the band have continued improving their compositional skills which advanced from their oft pedestrian Helserkr demo collection to last year’s sometimes inspiring Le Sang sur l’Acier EP.

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Blood Enter the Studio

German grindcore gods Blood have entered their studio to record their first album in 14 years according to their Facebook page. Good luck guys!

14 looong years after Dysangelium it feels amazing beeing in the studio again. Ventilator, Satanic Taki, Destroyer Eisen, Martin Witchskinner and Evil Chuck will promise you: something brutal will come! Be warned and stay tuned…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4-C-PpbfcM

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Hail of Bullets Breaks Up

Funderground party death ‘n’ roll and deathcore band Hail of Bullets has broken up according to a post on their Funbook page. Hail of Bullets’ illness was no reason to exist as a musical entity beyond lining the pockets and fattening the livers of Dutch death metal scene veterans through CD releases and festival gigs. Martin van Drunen quit the train wreck a while ago probably as death metal fans grew sick of the band’s constant stream of lame releases. The war is over Hail of Bullets. You lost and were executed for your crimes against metal music such as III: The Rommel Chronicles.

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Necrophobic 2017 Chilean Tour

Swedish black metal band Necrophobic is planning a short four show tour of Chile this June. Chilean fans should check them out especially as their best vocalist, Anders Strokirk off of The Nocturnal Silence, has rejoined the band. Hopefully they will play their best, early material.

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Upcomming Rotting Christ Vinyl Reissues

All of Rotting Christ‘s back catalog is being reissued on vinyl by Peaceville Records starting with their second release and first studio album, Thy Mighty Contract on April 21st. Hack writer Dayal Patterson of Black Metal: Evolution of the Cult is writing liner notes along with bang co-founder Sakis Tolis. A box set of all of their releases, including the ones nobody wants, will be released later this year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7CKYHEmNW0

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Kaeck’s Het zwarte diktaat Is Coming

Kaeck, whose Stormkult was The Best Underground Metal Release of 2015, announced on their Facebook page that a new album entitled Het zwarte diktaat (The Black Notes) is being written for release on Folter Records later this year.

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