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Showing posts from March, 2016

Cryptic Realms - The Rotten is Alive

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Cryptic Realms is a four piece band, members are Kostas Analytis - Vocals. Uriel Aguillon on Guitars / Drums. Victor Varas - on Bass Guitar. Tersis Zonato - Drums, Guitar Solos, Acoustic guitars.  Music style is listed as, metal. Band location, USA, Greece, Brazil and Mexico. The Rotten is Alive EP released on Dark Recollections Prods label on 20th March 2016. The opening song to this release "Shattered Dreams", sounds very classical. A clean strumming guitar piece with a sorrowful melody that is also complex in structure. The next track "Begging to the dead", clearly rooted in old school d/m but powerful enough to punch you in the gut. The characteristics of the recording are reminiscent of the band Death, Spiritual Healing era. Like a tribute to those distant times, it does work really well for these musicians. Some of the stand out performances from this album, for me, will be "Shadows of Disgrace" and "Scattered Thoughts".  In conclusio

Magister Dixit - Opus Astral

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Magister Dixit is a three piece band, members are W.Solstice, Strident S., Ekinox. Music style is listed as, Mystical Black metal. Band location, Laurentides. Opus Astral album released on Scum Productions March 7, 2016. Pure darkness is unleashed. The roots of black metal are apparent. The music explores with different sounds giving it a sense of the astral ambiance they are projecting. The song "Hall of Pain", is malevolent in all its arrangements. It certainly has a way to bring chills down your spine and its cryptic melody becomes ingrained in you mind. Another track that is on a top level for me would be "Respirer la mort", the use of blast beats, slow keyboard and flute passages make it an interesting song to listen to and it certainly creates an atmosphere of cosmic journeys in distant lands. "Pulveryzator" is a reckoning force and should be played at a high volume. You will also hear a cover, "Elder God (kataklysm cover)", it is a good

Ofghost - The Awakening

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Ofghost is a one piece band, members are Sami. Music style is listed as, DarkPrimitiveHybridMetalRockShit. Band location, Jyväskylä The Awakening album self released on March 7 2016. As the month of March reaches its end, my ears get one final full assault. This promo landed in my inbox and it crushes. Upon listening to this manifestation, it begins unassuming, with a nice melody and then it erupts without warning. Intense and relentless are the first things that pop into my mind. In totality they offer us seven songs of raw, gritty and dark tones. The lyrics are not in English, so, I am making this review based solely on the music that is being presented. One of the tracks that stands out above the rest would be the song "LUONA POLTTAVAN JĂ„Ă„N", it begins with a chant and it slowly builds up into a feeling of rage and anger as if preparing for war. The music easily crosses the line between black and death metal with short melodic passages and aggressive vocals.  In conc

Corprophemia - Abhorrogenesis

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Corprophemia is a four piece band, members are Vocals - Matt Kelly. Guitar - Franky D'Alimonte. Guitar - Mat Lemmon. Drums - Jason Longo. Music style is listed as, Technical Death Metal. Band location, Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Abhorrogenesis album released on CDN Records March 11, 2016. The heaviness coming from this release is over the top. Clever and potent samples on almost every track can be heard. The low tuned chords represented would make Meshuggah proud.  Eleven songs of menacing brutality. Very good production. Crushing hooks and memorable passages. Some of the more outstanding performances from this album for me, would be " Hour Of The Witch", "Divine Creation " and " Supreme Dark Covenant ". Some of the influence that may be noted would be bands like, Kranium, Pathology, Kataplexy and Devourment. While there is no new ground breaking material, the music sets a high level of energy and is most certainly engaging on all levels of the ge

WODE - S/T

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WODE is a three piece band, members are TH MC ET KS. Music style is listed as, Black Metal.  Band location, Manchester.  S/T album to be released on Broken Limbs April 8th 2016. My initial impression is, the realms of darkness are completely explored on this album. The opening track draws you in and before you know it, you feel deep inside the catacombs. The song the sits more prominently in my head would be " Death's Edifice ", it contains an eerie and haunting acoustic piece that is hard to resist, it leads the listener into a brutal and intense body of work reminiscent of bands like Mayhem , Gorgoroth and Bathory . " Trails Of Smoke ", hits another high mark on my list. Powerful and engaging fills with strong tremolo guitar riffs. The song " Spectral Sun ", starts out with a catchy intro that easily captivates the thoughts. A lot of attention to detail in most of these arrangements and the musical scope of dissonance is projected in full.     

NilExistence - Existence in Revelation

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NilExistence is a five piece band, members are Dave Gruver- Guitar. Ryan Kratzer- Guitar. Isaac Dillon- Bass. Kyle Kratzer- Drums. Patrick Tuohey- Vocals. Music style is listed as, Death Metal/Extreme Metal. Band location, Moravia, NY. Existence in Revelation album to be self released on 25 March 2016. My initial thoughts are, destructive, punishing and completely brutal. From the opening song " The Quietus ", we get intense blast beats that batter the senses without mercy. Presenting eight songs with this release, the band shows they are savage and powerful. A level of intensity that leaves no survivors in its wake. Good production, creative drums, heavy distorted tones and demonic vocals exhibited in every passage. Roaring double kicks annihilate and lay down a solid foundation for the rhythm guitars.  Some of my favorite songs from this album would be " Primordial Transgression ", " Pitch Black Perception " and " Screams Form Silence ".

Dimlight - The Lost Chapter

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Dimlight is a five piece band, members are Eva: Vocals. Peter: Guitars,Vocals. Nick: Guitars. Darien : Orchestra Composer. Jim: Drums. Music style is listed as, metal. Band location, Greece. The Lost Chapter album released on Sliptrick records February 10 2016. My initial impression is, "intense and destructive". The opening song " Children of Perdition ", is completely epic and thunderous. It is the perfect way to grab the listeners attention. With this release the group offers us ten tracks of aggressive and melodic metal with superb production. The music delivers a big impact. The arrangements are well written and you can tell they put a lot of attention to the small details. One the most captivating pieces to my ears would be the keyboard/synth rhythms, "Shattered Idols" is a good example of the chaotic magnitude of the music. Strong drums and heavy guitar tones come through with perfect sonic precision. Another song that hits a high mark on my lis

Palace of Worms - The Ladder

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Palace of Worms is a one piece band, Balan: all instruments/vocals. Music style is listed as, black metal. Band location, Oakland, Ca. The Ladder album to be released on Broken Limbs April 8th 2016. My initial thoughts are dark and oppressive sounds. Conceived in the roots of black metal but exploring other worldly sonic escapes. With this release the band offers us seven songs of manic transcendence. The track "Strange Constellation", resonates in my head , like a swirling abyss, its draws you in and slowly builds up like a tangle web of misery. One of the things I enjoy the most are the sorrowful melodies, "Ephemeral Blues", is the best candidate for these intense feelings. It brings all the elements together perfectly. Beyond the regular black metal vocals, you can also hear low whispering type of chants which cause a haunting mood through out  the album.   In conclusion, an ecliptic and potent album is unleashed. Many realms of tortured existence in an out

Manzer - Beyond the Iron Portal

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Manzer is a three piece band, members are Shaxul - Vocals, Drums. FĂ«arann - Bass, Backing Vocals. Hylde - Guitars. Music style is listed as, black metal. Band location, France. Beyond The Iron Portal album released on Armee de la Mort/Legion of Death (Shaxul's own label) January 19th 2016. The deep roots of the early metal days are felt in every riff. One of the captivating features of this album is how well the bass lines and guitar riffs follow each other. Creating clever melodies and catchy passages. The recording seems to resonate with an early 80s type of sound that adds to the overall feeling of classic metal sound. Reminiscent of bands like Venom, Accept, U.F.O. and Iron Maiden (Paul Di'Anno era). A lot of creative elements can be felt on the bass lines, not just holding down the rhythm but creating his own structures and solos. I like that in a recording, were the bass is highly involved in the songs. The guitar solos are also a big highlight on this album, in parti

Cetacean - exclusive interview

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1- Hello and welcome, first off, thanks for taking the time to do the interview, could you give our readers a brief description of the group? David : My pleasure, thank you for taking the time to interview me. Cetacean is a six piece metal band from Los Angeles, California. The members consist of me, David, on guitar, Swansong on guitar, vocals, saxophone and other assorted instruments, Daniel on drums, Ben on guitar/vocals, Stephen on bass guitar and vocals, and Trae on main vocals. 2- This is the band's debut EP, how long did it take to write and was this a collaborative work or did one person write all the music? David : It took about six years to write the music and record it. The music started with just me writing some riffs and passages...At first I was trying to do everything myself, and had no expectations of forming a band, but after a while I realized I couldn't get away from my love of collaborating with others. The foundations of the songs were written by m

Hemotoxin - Biological Enslavement

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Hemotoxin is a four piece band, members are Michael Chavez-Guitar/Vocals. Michael Rohwer-Guitar.  Nathan Fruth-Bass. Brandon Wilcox-Drums. Music style is listed as, Progressive Death Metal/Thrash.  Band location, Pittsburg, CA. Biological Enslavement album to be released on Unspeakable Axe Records 15 April 2016. This release is one of the most potent and extreme albums that has hit my ears this past week. The band has been delivering their brand of furiosity since 2011. The album has great production. The levels of progression are through the roof. You can not categorize something this awesome. It comes at you from every direction. It's thrash, it's groove, it's death, it's tech, it's melodic, it's prog, really, all of them, all at once. They offer us nine tracks of sheer brutality and complex riffing. Think of bands like Archspire, Defeated Sanity, Malevolent Creation and Death. Every song creates its own characteristics and you are bound to find somethin

HYPERION - Seraphical Euphony

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Hyperion is a six piece band, members are Harry LauraĂ©us- Vocals. Erik Molnar - Guitars. Anders Peterson - Drums. Mikael Malm - Guitars. Joel Hagroth - Guitars. Raul Vicente - Bass. Music style is listed as, Metal / Black metal / Death metal. Band location, Stockholm. Seraphical Euphony album released on Black Lion Productions February 22, 2016. This promo completely destroyed my senses. Its crushing on all levels. After spinning the entire album for the first time, I just kept coming back for more. Consider that I receive many promos every week, it becomes a rare thing for me to stay on a certain band for a time. With this release, I could not help but to keep it on replay.  Exploring all the dark manifestation presented to my ears. The album is a beast of sheer violence and raw brutality. The opening song comes in with relentless punishment. The music conceives images of certain doom and desolation. The nine tracks are cryptic and malevolent. This is a very well produced disc a

The Burning Dogma - No Shore of Hope

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The Burning Dogma is a six piece band, members are Andrea Montefiori-Vocals. Maurizio Cremonini guitar. Diego Luccarini-guitar. Simone Esperti-Bass. Giovanni Esposito Tastiera. Antero Villaverde -Drums. Music style is listed as, Dark Electro Death metal. Band location, Italy. No Shore of Hope album released on February 19th 2016 Sliptrick Records. My first thoughts are, maximum sound, a superior performance is captured. The intro grabs my attention. Good title "Waves of Solitude" which leads us into the monumental song "The Breach", upon hearing it for the first time, it completely melted my face. It becomes my favorite track from this release, the ending shatters my skull with intense melody and sorrowful sonic supremacy. Encountering a good variety of vocals as I listen, from low and mid growl, high screams and female vocals, there is never a dull moment. The music is progressive and delivers a high level of intensity. The complex arrangements and solos are th

The Burning Dogma - exclusive streaming Skies of Grey

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The Burning Dogma have revealed a brand new song from their album No Shores of Hope, check out the Soundcloud stream or visit the band emusic site to obtain the alum. Album link  emusic album

Mithridatic - Miserable Miracle

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Mithridatic is a five piece band, members are Guitou - Vocals. Romain Sanchez - guitar. Alexandre Brosse - guitar lead. Remolow - Bass turbo. Kevin Paradis - Drums Ancien Membre Simon Digonnet - Drums (2007-2011). Music style is listed as, Death/Brutal Black Metal. Band location, Saint Etienne. Miserable Miracle album to be released on Kaotoxin Records 11 March 2016. My first impression is, dark and menacing. Very good production, Heavy and precise drum sound, killer guitar tone for both rhythm and solo riffs. The band offers us nine devastating tracks full of energy and aggression punishing the senses every step of the way with primal execution. Some of the influences that maybe noted would be Vader, Immolation, Belphegore, Emperor and Behemoth. The massive waves of sonic madness coming through the speakers are highly impressive. My favorite songs from this release would have to be "Funambule Penitent, this song combines grinds and complex arrangements and delivers a savage

VERRĂ„TER/SXUPERION - split

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VERRĂ„TER/SXUPERION . Verrater is a three piece band, members are only known as J-Vocals . D-Guitar. N-Drums live situation C-Live Guitar , B-Live Bass. Music style is listed as, Black Metal.  Band location, Nebraska. Sxuperion one man project, obscure. VERRĂ„TER/SXUPERION split released on BloodyMountain Records & Sordid Curse Productions November 25 2015. My initial thoughts on this release are, raw knuckle and clenched teeth as I make my journey through this maze of horrors. The gritty production invoke a certain detail to this split. Verrater is first up on the release. Their brand of malevolence features high screams with fast tremolo guitar work. It can paralyze your thoughts. They offer us three songs on this split. My favorite would be "Vagrant". Next up is SxuperioN, a bit different in production than their predecessor, but still aggressive and pummeling. The vocals are low and more guttural. A savage exhibition is aroused. Maniacal and evil in its inception. Fo

Mayhem - Temples festival UK announced and DMDS trailer launched

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Mayhem have been announced as Friday night headliners at this year's Temple's Festival in Bristol. The event will take place at the city's Motion venue between June 2 and 5. They join a bill that already includes fellow headliners Melvins (Saturday) and Carcass (Sunday), plus Vision Of Disorder, Voices, Mgla, All Pigs Must Die and many more. Mayhem will be performing a set based around their classic 1994 De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, widely considered to be one of the most important black metal albums of all time. "The first time I heard from Mayhem was in '91-'92 when I received a letter from Euronymous," says vocalist Attila Csihar. "I did not know that letter was gonna change my whole life. They were looking for a new vocalist for their debut record to replace Dead, who had passed away. Of course I said yes to their offer and in 1993 we recorded the album called De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas — one of the most magical recordings of all time.

A Thousand Sufferings - Burden

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A Thousand Sufferings is a four piece band, members are, PJ: Guitar/Vocals . Jurgen: Guitar. Nico: Bass. Timo: Drums. Music style is listed as, blackened doom metal. Band location, Belgium. Burden album released on Satanath Records December 23 2015. My initial thoughts are, a thunderous and oppressive sound that could crash walls with sonic aggression. This is the bands debut and it delivers powerful riffs of heavy, destructive hymns from the outer realms. Some of the bands that come to my mind as I listen would be Celtic Frost, Neurosis and The Lumberjack Feedback. The band offers us four tracks with this release. They take the listener through long and menacing journeys. I would have to say the song the most stood out to me is "Red Is Redemption (Bloodletting)" I feel this track captures the essence of what the band is projecting with their sound and also enjoy the solos very much. In conclusion, if you are looking for something dark, extreme and with enough low end t

Demonstealer - This Burden Is Mine

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The Demonstealer is a one man band, comprised of Demonstealer (Sahil Makhija) also happens to be host of Headbanger's Kitchen, an online cooking show where he cooks food and interviews members of other metal bands. Album line up is listed as Demonstealer - Vocals/Guitars/Keys.  Ashwin Shriyan - Bass. George Kollias - Drums.  Music style is listed as, Metal. Band location, Mumbai. This Burden is Mine album to be self released on March 25th 2016. My first impression is, extreme and melodic. First of, the production is great. Clean and well produced. From the clean melodies to the heavy guitars and intense drum sound, the album is tight.  With this release comes nine tracks of high energy and intense metal with memorable solos and expressive soundscapes. Although my ears were absolutely glued the entire time from the moment I hit the play button. The track that really captured my attention the most would have to be the title track "This Burden is Mine", its intro grabs

Shock After Collapse - Shock After Collapse

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Shock After Collapse is a five piece band, members are Blai Drummer-drums, Rob Marco-guitars,bass,vocals,keyboards. Pedro Duran-Guitars, Jimmi Cuenca-Bass, Zyrus-Vocals.  Music style is listed as, Metal. Band location, Madrid, Spain. Shock After Collapse album self released on October 21 2015. My initial thoughts are, incredibly fucking heavy, tremendous fury, an unbridled power is released upon my ears. Production is solid and well balanced sounds. The album is an impressive debut and can make you headbang from the first instant you hear it. A mix of low aggressive vocals, high screams and also clean singing. Some influence that may be noted would be In Flames, Opeth, Lamb of God, Dream Theater and Chimera. With this release, the band is offering eight savage tracks. Among my favorites would have to be "Wall of Death", like a call to action in a mosh pit situation, this song gets your blood pumping and your fist clenching. The song "Dust", pummels the senses. H

Devil's Hound - Cries and Whispers

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Devil's Hound reveal brand video Against Pr "Devil’s Hound is a one-man-project created by Dean Noir – a person’s alter-ego whose real name isn’t important. The project started in 2015 and since then some demos have been released digitally. The raw, lo-fi and somehow atmospheric sound mirrors what humans are: fallible beings. The lyrical concept wanders around lost loves, demons and classic horror films (namely featuring Vincent Price). Somewhere during 2016, Devil’s Hound will release the EP “A Night With Ingmar Bergman” in which will be presented songs inspired on films created by the iconic Swedish director. For now, the musician anticipates the upcoming release by sharing a song titled “Cries And Whispers”. facebook-devilshound.hell Devil’s Hound is suitable for fans of King Dude, Of The Wand And The Moon or Sol Invictus

Scarleth - unleash brand new video

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Scarleth is remarkable and experienced Ukrainian metal band playing music on joint of modern heaviness and diverse melodism. For the time being the band has played several hundreds of live shows, released two full-length albums worldwide and took part in festivals where Sergey Mavrin, Cherniy Obelisk, Dark Lunacy and other famous bands performed. Band’s style is expanding constantly and represents mind-blowing mixture of many melodic genres - from power, folk, doom and gothic metal to modern/progressive metal. Band completely deserves to be called one of the most outstanding young musical representatives of its style. Website: http://scarleth.com.ua vKontakte: http://vk.com/scarleth YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/scarlethband/videos Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scarlethmetal

Cetacean - Breach/Submerge

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Cetacean is a six piece band, members are David- guitar. Swansong- sax, guitar, vocals. Stephen- bass, vocals. Trae- vocals. Benigno- guitar, vocals. Daniel- Drums. Music style is listed as, Heavy.  Band location, Los Angeles, CA. Breach/Submerge album to be released on 27 May 2016 Apes Who Looked Up Records. My initial thoughts are, the opening track begins with a mellow jazzy sounding intro. In contrast to what it leads ibto which is a heavier and more pronounced attack. The music is mostly rooted in the doom metal genre but it also show much melody and progressive passages. In terms of production, this is a solid piece of work. precise drums, heavy stomping bass lines and aggressive guitar distortion. The second track "Relationships Deteriorate" takes us on a long journey. I enjoy the arrangements and solos very much. It is a song that can penetrate deep in the mind. Finally the song "Outpour I,II,III" this is what the band is currently streaming on their BC

Interment - Scent of the Buried

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Interment is a four piece band, members are Johan Jansson - Guitars/Vox, Torbjörn Brynedal - Guitars, Allan Lundholm - Bass, Kennet Englund - Drums. Music style is listed as, Swedish Old School Death Metal. Band location, Sweden. Scent of the Buried album to be released on Dark Descent April 1st 2016. The band brings us another installment of raging brutality from the well established death metal roots of the early nineties. The raw and punishing wave of destruction that is contained within these compositions will melt your face. A familiar structure of aggression is thrust upon my ears and the savagery begins. Delivering ten menacing and potent tracks of old school material. Right down to the recording quality and horror movie samples, its all represented here.  Adding this album to their collection of macabre renderings since 1991. Sounding just as good as if it came out of that era and maintaining a level of power that is devastating and barbaric. I would say my favorite songs

Camel of Doom - Terrestrial

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Camel of Doom is a three piece band made up of Kris Clayton - Guitar/Vocals/Keyboards, Simon Whittle - Bass, Ben Nield - Drums. Music style is listed as, Psychedelic Progressive Doom Metal.  Band location, UK Terrestrial album released on Solitude Productions 8 February 2016. An impressive and destructive force has been unleashed. This album is menacing. Excellent production. Big distortion sound, heavy stomping drums and captivating vocals.  The band offers us eight tracks of deep and spacial adventure. Resonating waves through the perpetual abyss with the most savage edge. These songs have incredible soundscapes and textures. Reminiscent of bands like Novembers Doom, Neurosis, Space Riders and Paradise Lost. The opening track is about twelve minutes long and sets the frame work for the rest of the album. Out of the eight, the songs that resonated in my mind the most were "A Circle Has No End" it is probably the shortest track on here but it manages to captivate my tho

Visions of the Night vs.ReMechanized - Industrial Military Complex

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Visions of the Night vs.ReMechanized is a one man project by Wolvesblood: Guitar/Vocals live guest performances by Rob Urbinati (track 1) Warhead (tracks 4 and 8) Jenn Kilburn (track 2) Session drums intro track Todd Hansen. Music style is listed as, Death/Black military inspired metal. Band location, Canada. Industrial Milit ary Complex   album self released on January 2 2016. My initial thoughts on this release are, destructive sounds centered on war themes. The industrial drum sound is persistent through out the majority of this album. Guitars have a low tuned raw distortion. The music is definitely rooted in black/death metal, but they do have dissonant and haunting overtures that bring it into another realm.  Some of the bands that may be noted as an influence would be, N17, Ministry, Gorefest, Brutal Truth and Fleshcrawl. The opening song "War Is Our Religion", comes in at high velocity. Aggressive and devastating in its delivery. The song sets the tone for the res

Grand Sounds PR - Vol. 6 now streaming

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Grand Sounds PR have just revealed a monumental compilation album featuring twenty one bands from all around the globe. Check out the official Youtube stream below, plus a list of all the bands featured in the compilation. Entitled Grand Sounds PR Vol 6. They are gathering new material for Vol. 7 so, if your band will like to participate visit them on then link provided below. facebook-grandsounds 1- CIRCLE OF INDIFFERENCE (Swe) "Another Day in Paradise" 2-LOST ETERNITY (Ger) "Orion" 3-MATUBES (Bul) "Left Hand Path" 4-INLANDSYS (Fra) "March Of The Dead" 5-AGAROTH (Mex) "Distortion of Illusions" 6-THIRD ION (Can) "Zero Mass" (feat members of The Devin Townsend band and Into Eternity) (Glasstone Records) 7-RAPTURE (Gre) "Laboratories of Infection" (Witches Brew) 8-WITCHING HOUR (Ger) "Once Lost Souls Return" 09: ZORD (Hun) "Thorns & Wounds" 10-DARK LETTER (Pol) &q