Wyldstone Metal

Underground Essentials #1 - Ancient Ascendant

2010-04-07T10:47:00.016+01:00

Hails Metal Fans, and welcome to a new feature, called
"Underground Essentials"

In this section I shall be showcasing some of my personal favourite Underground Metal bands, that are either underplayed, underrated, or just a band that I feel will benefit from my efforts, that thoroughly deserve being thrown in your face.

If a band is in this section, I think that they are amazing, so I shall not be giving the bands marks out of 10 or anything like that, and I shall try and keep my personal opinions to a minimum.
But I will give you everything you need to know, to give you the opportunity, to fall in love with these bands as I have!

So now onto the feature, I present to you!

Ancient Ascendant formed in 2005 in Reading, UK. Since then, the band has been developing their unique sound and gigging across the country. They self released their debut EP “The Heathen Throne” at the end of 2008 and have received awesome reviews from many within the UK Metal News and promotion industry.

I first came across these guys in 2008, at Finnstock Festival in Weymouth. Until this point I had never heard of the guys, and from that point on I would never forget them. Here's what I had to say about them back then....

"Modern Progressive death metal, and I should have written more notes for these guys, but I was too busy enjoying their set, and then got so drunk over the course of the night that a full review is a little difficult. But like I said, it's their own fault for being so good. Very clever, and very tight, I'd say a fight between Zyklon & Death, with opeth as the referee is a fair description. Anyone reading this that hasn't heard Ancient Ascendant! Do it now! you be glad you checked em out I assure you"

....and to this day I still agree, and after obtaining a copy of "The Heathen Throne" recently I had to take the opportunity to shove these guys in your face once again!

When you get it don't let it leave your CD player for a while, and stick it on repeat as you will love this the more you listen to it, and notice something new you hadn't noticed the previous time as the tracks repeat! It has so much depth, and is appealing for so many different reasons. The potential fan spectrum for a band like this is limitless.

The biggest influences I would say are Opeth & Bloodbath. I personally prefer Ancient Ascendant to either band, but if you where to draw a line and put Opeth at one end and Bloodbath at the other then AA would fall smack bang in the middle of the two for me. At this point I dare say fans of Mikael Akerfelt are already rushing through this so they can check out AA asap, but I'll also say that if you like Carcass, Vader, Death, Vital Remains or Zyklon, then you should also make sure that AA's Myspace site (attached below) is the next thing on your agenda after reading this! Thank you for reading and I shall leave you with some of AA's best reviews, and the links to all the AA sites you could need! P.S Watch this space! New album in progress and coming soon!

Reviews!

"...Sparking memories of early In Flames one minute, Entombed and Dismember the next…
The gloriously murky graveyard scene on the cover is as evocative and professional as the impeccable song writing, all of which commands you bow your head in reverence to the future of English death metal..."
- 5.5/6 Zero Tolerance Magazine

"...A debut laden with promise and invention, The Heathen Throne takes in skull rattling dark thrash, pummelling mid-paced doom and even some jagged, staccato grooves that reek of the early 90s... a very British sounding slab of dark metal that points towards a very bright and fruitful future for all concerned"
- Metal Hammer

"...I was shocked at the ability and pure genius of this band..."
"...With the heavyness of a metal band they have also shown that the beauty of melody can go along side a brutal genre of music, but in a bigger and better way than anyone has ever tried before..."
- Ragebreed Reviews

Links!
www.ancientascendant.com
Myspace Page
Facebook Page
UKMU Forum

Wyldstone Hotseat #2

2010-04-02T12:54:00.014+01:00

Question 1: How and when did you first get into metal?

Koen:
I guess I was about 13 years old, when a friend of mine in school gave me a mixed tape, along with the words ‘you have to check this shit out’. On the tape were songs from Metallica, Megadeth and Sepultura. I remember being hooked on it instantly, I always loved music, but this was the style I had been looking for. I also remember that Sepultura took some more time to get into, because of the vocals haha. Never heard anything like that before.

Iain:
Tape trading at school, probably about 9 or 10 years old.

Anna:
I got into metal about 7 years ago (I was 12,13 years old when I got into heavier music) but I honestly don't remember how. I've always listened to many different kinds of music and not just one genre. All I remember is buying a Darkthrone CD at an airport somewhere with my dad which really got me into black metal, hehe.

Ben:
Back when I was about 11 I heard metallica blasting out my brothers room, I caught on, stole the vinyl and it all began from there!

Vlad:
I first got into hardcore, when I was 13, but my ears wanted to bleed even more, so I first got into Raised Fist and Stampin Ground, which were the right compromise, being the real pioneers of metalcore, and then moved to At The Gates and Dark Tranquillity!

Question 2: What was the first CD/LP you remember buying?

Koen:
That was Metallica – And Justice for all…

Iain:
It was in 1986, I bought "Reign In Blood" on tape, it was the first original I had, everything else was copies from tape trading.

Anna:
I think The Verve's "Urban Hymns" when I was around 7 or 8

Ben:
The first CD I ever bought was "Hammer Smashed Face" by Cannibal Corpse, before then Id survived on hand me downs from my bro

Vlad:
I bought Metallica's "Kill Em All" and "Dookie" by Green Day the same day ahah, I was on holidays in Paris, 13 years old and still a bit confused ahah!!

Question 3: Who are your biggest influences?

Koen:
I don’t really have one particular influence, but Megadeth, Morbid Angel and Dissection really inspired me to write my own music when I started to play guitar.

Iain:
Henry Rollins (Rollins band / Black Flag), Dark throne, Minor Threat, crossed out, Tsjuder, Deeds of Flesh, Motorhead, Neurosis.

Anna:
Manes from Norway. What they have done is the definition of music for me.

Ben:
The reason I do what I do is Mr Barnes for his Cannibal Corpse days and I'd say my most recent influences would be John from Dying Fetus and George Fisher of Corpse

Vlad:
I think we're mainly influenced by The Black Dahlia Murder, August Burns Red and british finests Sylosis, but who got the chance to listen to our new album "Concerto For The Undead" so far, found lots of elements comparable to Darkest Hour, so that's definitely another great band to add to the list!

Question 4: What is the highlight, of your career so far?

Koen:
We had a couple of really good periods with Detonation. A couple of good European tours and cool shows, but the thing that stuck with me the most were the 2 shows we did in New Dehli, India in 2008. Amazing experience to be able to play your music on the other side of the world in front of a thousand Indian people going crazy.

Iain:
Shattering a guys jaw in Glasgow the night before we played with Gorgoroth in 2007, i got away with it and we did a great gig

Anna:
Playing in India in front of 20'000 people. Apart from that, the amount of tours we can join.

Ben:
So far would be either being signed to our first label for Decomposition Of Humanity or playing our first overseas show.

Vlad:
I think playing Wacken Open Air in 2005, touring Europe last year and supporting Bleeding Through and Bring Me The Horizon in their italian shows! Also recording our new record was a great moment for us, I really hope lots of people will dig our stuff as well!

Question 5: ...and what about the lowest point?

Koen:
We also had a lot of bad luck with touring, unfortunately… a lot of metal bands experienced the same things. Bad promoters, crappy tour busses, lousy turnouts. But the worst I ever experienced was doing a show in Wales in a bar, with basically 5 people watching, no light show whatsoever, no stage, very sad haha..

Iain:
Playing with Mayhem, they are totally subhuman.

Anna:
Sitting at home with nothing to do.

Ben:
Losing all my members and being left to start all over again.

Vlad:
Playing a show for 2 guys in France ahah, that was so bad, but an important experience anyway!

Question 6: What's the best practical joke one of your band mates
has pulled off on tour?

Koen:
Oh man…where to start. A lot of crazy stuff always happens on the road, especially on those European trips. I can’t remember one specific thing though, maybe that has something to do with all the heavy drinking.

Iain:
We load in, I go to the gym, we play, we load out, we leave, I try to have as little contact with people on tour as possible.

Anna:
Hard to say, so much stupid crap happens on tour... It was pretty funny when we were gaffa taping someone's bunk completely shut (he had a girl with him). From time to time we buy stupid shit like megaphones, light sabers and weird costumes to have fun with...

Ben:
Probably when we all told matt (drums) to get on a different train in Sweden and he ended up in some strange farm town while we made our way to the hotel, he wasn't too happy!

Vlad:
We're funny guys, every show or tour is just fun and jokes for us, so it's pretty hard for me to remember one in particular... well, this summer our guitar player Andrea faked to be kidnapped while we were stuck in a queue on the german motorway, he got his hands tied with a rope and tape on his mouth, I still think the cars close to us thought that was real!

Question 7: If metal didn't exist! What do you think you'd be doing with your life?

Koen:
Gaming 24/7, or work at a music store or something.

Iain:
Guitar and vocals in but - old school hardcore - Crossed out, Minor Threat, Discharge style music. or on tour with the Parachute regiment shooting Taliban.

Anna:
I'd have my 2,3 electronica/pop projects and play bass in a post-rock band.

Ben:
Probably be a bike builder or a Tattooist I'd imagine

Vlad:
I'd be playing fast and aggressive music ahah!! I don't know, I really dedicated the best years of my life to this, so I can't think about something else, and hope this is just the beginning of good things to come!

Question 8: What's your craziest experience of your fans?

Koen:
I once had a girl asking me for a pick after the show, and she went to the toilet with it. When she came back she proudly told me she had put inside her … you know what. Up to this day, I still don’t understand why, but I thought it was pretty cool haha!

Iain:
A guy stage dived in Bulgary and hit the boom mic stand with his leg on the way off the vocal monitor, it chipped out half of my front tooth, we have had that kind of thing a lot though, the pits get so violent someone eventually gets cut open with something at some point.

Anna:
In India they went completely nuts and started tearing down some barriers way in the back, so we were forced to stop playing immediately and they wanted to get us back to the hotel. We pretty much refused and wanted to continue the concert which we eventually could after someone had made an announcement to calm the people down. That was pretty epic.

Ben:
Probably back in 2003 when I let a fan smash a pint glass over me head, splitting my head open covering me in clarot!! I think if I rememer I continued drinking out the glass and started chewing broken glass over the mic spitting blood at people!! One very messy might!

Vlad:
We got a pretty sick human pyramid in the UK, and a hell sick wall of death in one of the shows we did with Bring Me The Horizon ahah!

And The Most Important question of all!

Question 9: In The event of a zombie apocalypse! What would be your weapon of choice?

Koen:
Definitely a flamethrower, but with the extra possibility to shoot acid grenades with it!

Iain:
Zombie are pretend, but if they did exist it probably throw you at them.
Thanks for giving Artisian the time and space.
PRAY SATAN FATHER

Anna:
An out of tune hurdy-gurdy. Headshot!

Ben:
Chuck Norris.

Vlad:
Heavy machine gun?! yeah probably ahah!

Thanks guys for your time, and thank you for reading! Spread the word and they'll be lots more of this to follow.

For More Information On The Bands Interviewed, check out

Detonation:
www.detonation.nl
Myspace Page
Facebook Page

Artisian:
www.Artisian.co.nr
Myspace Page

Eluveitie:
www.eluveitie.ch
Myspace Page
Facebook Page

Fleshrot:
Myspace Page
Facebook Page

Stigma:
www.stigmahc.com
Myspace Page
Facebook Page

Hammerfest 2! What A Weekend! Photo's now up on facebook!

2010-03-15T19:34:00.004Z

Click Here to see Pics Of Abgott, Carach Angren, Sabaton, Dark Funeral & Ackercoke

It was one hell of a weekend,and I thought I'd share with you some of my highlights!

Interview's In...

2010-03-07T16:19:00.023Z

Question 1: How and when did you first get into metal?

Andy Milnes:
I played guitar from a young age and discovered
metal at the age of 9 or 10.

Andy Morris:
I was about 15 or 16. It was the usual Metallica, Megadeth and Iron Maiden introduction, got into Pantera at around the same time. Then I saw My Dying Bride supporting Iron Maiden in Newport, showing me a side of metal that I'd never experienced before and that had a huge impact! I'm still a massive MDB fans now, Around 1995 I was introduced to Carcass, Morbid Angel and Machine Head and it all went south of heaven from there.

Agamoth:
Horror movies were the trigger for me to get into metal. Mostly Dario Argentos ones as they featured Iron Maiden, Motorhead and such like bands. I got into metal properley in 1991.

James Davenport:
After hearing the track Zero Signal, by Fear Factory on the original Carmageddon pc game. (Driving over pedestrians to that song makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside.)

Kai Leikola:
I think it’s quite the ordinary story as a teenager by my big brother & his friends. Never gotten out since.

Question 2: What was the first CD/LP you remember buying?

Andy Milnes:
Queen"A Kind Of Magic" when I was around 6 or 7 in my pre metal days.

Andy Morris:
Def Leppard "Hysteria" on LP. Also when I was about 9 or 10, I remember giving a school friend my £1 lunch money for a copied tape which had "Slippery When Wet" (Bon Jovi) and "Appetite for Destruction"
(GUNS n' ROSES) on it. That kid's still a dodgy dealer now 20 years on!

Agamoth:
"Blizzard Of Oz" (Ozzy Osbourne) on tape cassette.

James Davenport:
Fear Factory "Demanufacture". That started my whole interested in metal and a later on, drumming.

Kai Leikola:
I could be mistaken, but I think it was Sepultura "Roots" and that is still an excellent album.

Question 3: Who are your biggest influences?

Andy Milnes:
My dad, Vlad the Impaler and Chewbacca.

Andy Morris:
I would say our main influences come from old school death and thrash bands. Morbid Angel, Angelcorpse, Death, Vader that kind of thing. There's occasional black metal influence too from the likes of Immortal etc, but it's mainly proper death metal.

Agamoth:
Tough One! 80's metal in general.

James Davenport:
I have many influences, mostly industrial/thrash bands from LA, Florida and
San francisco. I really like the Testament album "The Gathering" and the "Live in London" album/DVD. Not to mention I do like a little bit of extreme metal every now and then. Hate Eternal, Nile, Serpents Rise and lately a new band from the UK called Era Untold.

Kai Leikola:
It’s a cliche, but I would have to say life itself and everything that happens around you. What you see, hear, read and feel. And that is then converted into songs of death. How ironic is that!? Music is of course a big influence but we don’t aspire to sound like anyone else.

Question 4: What is the highlight, of your career so far?

Andy Milnes:
Playing shows in the Czech Republic have been the best for me personally.

Andy Morris:
It's difficult to pick one highlight, Playing to about 8000 people in Indonesia was pretty mental, and Japan had some of the best gigs I've ever played. Having a snowball fight with Onslaught in Oslo was pretty cool, also getting Peter from Vader to get his tits out on command was bizarre.

Agamoth:
Well for me the highlight is simply to be able to record music and perform it live.

James Davenport:
Playing Wacken Rocks Festival 2009 with Slayer and a few other great bands but playing Japan in March this year will come pretty close.I seriously can’t wait to get out there. I’d like to thank Miki of Rock Stakk Records for putting on this show and personally inviting us to play there!

Kai Leikola:
There are so many! Hearing your song on the radio for the first time, playing a sold out show, etc. But if I have to pick just one, I'd say going to Russia for the first time. That was just mind blowing.

Question 5: ...and what about the lowest point?

Andy Milnes:
Yeah we got to a venue once and we had to pay for our own beer!
That was hard to get over.

Andy Morris:
Once we were travelling from North West Spain to Strasbourg in a minibus, it took us 30 hours only to find when we got there the venue was being renovated and there was no gig. Ollie spent his entire birthday in that bus driving up there! What a waste of a trip.

Agamoth:
I don't have any to be honest.

James Davenport:
There hasn’t really been a low point… we all stay positive and put 250% each into the band.

Kai Leikola:
I think there are a dozen of low points when you start a band and then try to work our way up. And I hope we have to decency to quit before we reach a new one.

Question 6: What's the best practical joke one of your band mates
has pulled off on tour?

Andy Milnes:
Maybe the time Nige was asleep in his bunk with his head hanging out, I put toothpaste all over his eyelids, he slept in his drunken state like that for a further couple of hours and when he eventually woke up....you can imagine the result.
I don't know if that was the best practical joke that's happened but
it's the first one that came into my mind.

Andy Morris:
Not a practical joke but Mic created such a stink on a plane once that meant the cabin crew had to spray throughout the entire plane. We also climbed on stage with Evile once wearing just our underwear and the tightest Evile shirts we could find on the merch stand, air guitaring through whichever song it was they were playing. Fun times!
Ollie's usually the practical joker of the band, we were travelling from Estonia to Russia, on public transport, and I was feeling rough from vodka the night before. I woke up as we were approaching the Russian border, complete with armed guards that didn't look like they were going to take shit from anyone, I was frantically looking for an immigration card to fill in as all the boys had theirs ready to go, Ollie told me that they were at the back of the bus and to ask the people there where they were as it wasn't obvious. So I stumbled up the bus, asking petrified elderly Russians where the immigration cards were, most of whom ignored me because my clothes were ripped and my jacket was covered in vomit, but others just shook their heads as they didn't understand. I was getting more and more desperate and asked all the other people in the aisle on the way back down the bus about these cards
only to find the rest of Extreme Noise Terror and Desecration pissing themselves in their seats holding my immigration card. Bastards!

Agamoth:
"I am going home because I don't like the tour bus..." I took it too seriously and fired the guy! ahahahaha!

James Davenport:
We tend to avoid each other while travelling/touring. We all have our own thing to do whether it be promoting the next show, sorting out equipment and helping techs at venues or sleeping.

Kai Leikola:
Can’t recall anything worth mentioning. I think the best ones are still ahead, since we learned A LOT of new and excellent practical jokes that are just pure evil touring with Descend from their bass player Justin Biggs a few weeks ago, but we haven’t had time to put them into use yet. But we will. And then will we have a story to tell!

Question 7: If metal didn't exist! What do you think you'd be doing with your life?

Andy Milnes:
If metal didn't exist I would be a vicar or summit, spreading the word of god ;)

Andy Morris:
Hardcore punk! Thankfully metal does exist, otherwise I'd be driving a wooden car around.

Agamoth:
I'd be dead for sure!

James Davenport:
Inventing it! I haven’t really thought about it… probably be in the porn industry... yeah. JD’s Adult Entertainment.

Kai Leikola:
I guess I’d be drinking in silence trying to figure out what’s missing. With any luck, it would be discovered anew. Instead of lyrics I think I’d be writing poetry, expressing myself through that.

Question 8: What's your craziest experience of your fans?

Andy Milnes:
All our fans have issues... they listen to our music

Andy Morris:
When we were playing at Inferno, we met a huge Aussie Desecration fan that had practically everything we've released with him to get signed and wanted photographs with us. That was pretty cool seeing as Norway and Australia are pretty damn far apart and we were one of the main bands he'd come to see, you can imagine our surprise when we saw him a couple of weeks later in Holland at the Neurotic Deathfest, then at Deathfeast in Germany!! What a fucking trooper!

Agamoth:
Being stalked and told that I was loved and this person wanted to move next to my house so he could check on my well being!

James Davenport:
There was this one particular show we played a few years ago where 2 people knocked themselves out while head banging in a club! But I think it HAS to be the crowd at Wacken and also the people who came to watch us at Bloodstock 2008.

Kai Leikola:
I think this question is answered best with the following link. Gotta hail this guy!

And The Most Important question of all!

Question 9: In The event of a zombie apocalypse! What would be your weapon of choice?

Andy Milnes:
A spud gun with a bag king Edwards, them zombie fuckers wouldn't stand a chance

Andy Morris:
Well I recently played Dead Rising on the 360, and unsurprisingly the most satisfactory weapon by far was the bass guitar. The clong as you bash their heads in is hugely satisfying, plus that's the most likely thing I'd have to hand anyway.

Agamoth:
A Vulcan! This weapon is usually installed on jets and it's the one Stallone used in the first rambo movie! Easy. Powerfull, a bit heavy, but surely deadly.

James Davenport:
I hate zombies but definitely a football sock with 2-3 snooker balls in.

Kai Leikola:
Ha! I wouldn't need a weapon 'cos I would be leading the fucking zombies!

Thanks guys for your time, and thank you for reading! Spread the word and they'll be lots more of this to follow.

For More Information On The Bands Interviewed, check out

Hecate Enthroned:
www.hecate-enthroned.co.uk
Myspace Page
Facebook Page

Desecration:
www.desecration.co.uk
Myspace Page
Facebook Page

Abgott:
www.abgott.co.uk
Myspace Page
Facebook Page

Warpath:
www.warpath-online.com
Myspace Page
Youtube Channel
Facebook Page

Soulfallen:
www.soulfallen.com
Myspace Page
Facebook Page

New Finntroll Video - Solsagan

2010-02-18T16:47:00.001Z

FINNTROLL - Solsagan (OFFICIAL VIDEO). Taken from the album "Nifelvind". Century Media 2010.

Wyldstone Metal-Also On Myspace

2010-02-15T16:40:00.002Z

and have been since 2007! Click Here For Wyldstone Myspace

Finnstock IV - Queens Hotel, Weymouth 2008 - Drunken Festival Review

2010-02-12T17:44:00.001Z

Before you read this, let me point out, I am not a journalist, I am a huge underground metal fan! And I got just as wankered all weekend as the rest of you did, so I'm sorry if this falls a little below typical review standards, but hopefully you'll see it as a fitting tribute to one hell of a weekend.

Septic Tank
First open blender, then you take
1 pair of tights, 1 fluffy hat, 2 wrestling masks, 1 18inch black dildo and a blow up doll that has clearly been around a fair bit, and shake.
Then add Lividity and Morician, liquidise the lot, and drip feed the mixture directly into the vein of some really talented musicians and you have the awesome display of grind/porncore that is septic tank! Whole crowd is either laughing, crying or going crazy right from the start as these guys take the stage, my only criticism! I wanted more!
9/10

Entity
They don't call this guy 12 fingers for nothing! A fantastic display of neoclassical, progressive metal! Not one person in the venue would dare to criticise despite this band clearly being very different to the majority at this years gathering. Topped off with an awesome slayer cover, I dare say Yngwie Malmsteen himself would have been glad to have been here for these guys! Very good ndeed
6/10

Sekhmet
Now I have to admit at this point, that I'm not a big fan of "Proper" Thrash, respect where it's due, I just ain't the biggest fan, but Sekhmet for me are something else! I have seen these guys over ten times over the space of about 4 or 5 years and they just keep getting better! The three of them are tighter than an ant's asshole, and Weymouth fucking loved it! Call me biased all you like, I don't give a shit, for me, Sekhmet are the best thrash band on the fucking planet, An awesome cover of domination thrown in for good measure, Everybody happy!!
8/10

Seregon
These guys have an amazing amount of energy and the crowd react accordingly from the off, very good, very tight, a perfect equilibrium of Thrash and Death metal, with a very melodic edge, that any fan of either genre should definitely check out. If max cavalera hooked up with vader, this is probably a very good bet at what they would come up with. The only band of the weekend that I was unable to give my full attention to, and I'm gutted twas the case because what I did hear was Fanastic
7/10

Viscera
Remind me a lot of old fear factory in some places these guys, then the next minute it's like listening to nile, then just when you don't expect it, you get some messugahesque brutality shoved right up ya ass! These guys take tight to a whole new level with this ultra technical. Abstract display of Brutality (2 DAYS RUNNING!) I first saw these guys last year and some advice Dave Axcell gave me literally fucking changed my life! But no need to rush back Mr Axcell because Mr Anderson, not content with being a distgustingly good drummer, is doing a fucking fantastic job of keeping your seat warm for ya! Oh and p.s I love Mr benini's bass soo fuckin much! That guy must have huge hands to conquer that axe to the amazing standard this guy plays to.
8/10

Archaic Arcanum
Pure Christ Raping Black Metal at it's absolute finest, when you watch Marduk live, something evil happens to the crowd, and these guys seem to have the same effect, it's impossible not to go insane when these guys are onstage, (that is unless you've bumped into Squid their guitarist one too many times in the build up) They have so much stage presence, Charisma and passion, all these guys need is the right break and I can't see anything stopping them. Can't really say much more other than thank you so much Archaic! I can't wait to see you again in Exeter soon.
10/10

Theoktony
On a night like tonight Archaic are a very tough act to follow, and by this point the crowd is soo drunk, me included that even standing up is becoming an issue!
But Theoktony are not phased by the challenge and are definitely up to the Job! All the way from the midlands, these guy's are another band that go from strength to strength, last year they were brutal, now they are re-writing the definition of the term brutality! Death metal at it's finest, the barriers came down and the pit literally got out of control!! Theoktony means the death of god, and if he is up there, and ain't dead yet, stick these guys in the CD player at the pearly gates and I've be very surprised if he/she would stand much of a chance of hanging around any longer! An awesome end, to an awesome day! BLAUS!!!!!
9/10

DAY 2

Ezikiel
Another one of many amazing local offerings open up the second day, I was hugely impressed with these guys. Blackened death metal, with equal amounts of melody and intensity with Guitar work that reminded me of the likes of Naglfar and Chthonian, with also much of their stuff being very thrash orientated, these guys should appeal to anyone who like's their metal to incorporate that extra range/variety factor. Tis a shame these guys had to go on so early, but someone had to, and they still did a great job despite the fact that half the crowd were still recovering from the day before! I look forward to seeing these guys again very soon hopefully
7/10

Ancient Ascendant
Modern Progressive death metal, and I should have written more notes for these guys, but I was too busy enjoying their set, and then got so drunk over the course of the night that a full review is a little difficult. But like I said, it's their own fault for being so good. Very clever, and very tight, I'd say a fight between Zyklon & Death, with opeth as the referee is a fair description. Anyone reading this that hasn't heard Ancient Ascendant! Do it now or I'll send Septic Tank round to your mum's house, you be glad you checked em out I assure you
7/10

Dissonance
All the way from Liverpool, these guys do an amazing job of reminding people exactly what traditional death metal should sound like, Dirty, Groovy, and disgusting, with vocal's straight outta the bowels of hell. Fantastic guys too, very new band, but you'll be hearing a lot more from them in the future I guarantee it! I had the pleasure of sharing accommodation with 3 of their 5 members, had a fantastic weekend with them, and shall definitely keep in touch. And if they don't come down here again soon, go see them elsewhere, they will definitely be worth the journey
8/10

Artisian
Been looking forward to seeing these guys live for a long time. Despite possibly coming straight out of Black Mass the night before, and clearly being ready to take on Satan himself if the situation arose, Ian and co are fantastic guys, that I recommend every extreme promoter in the country check out! And there's no bullshit with these guys, it does exactly what it says on the tin! RAW FUCKING RAGE! 9 inch spikes, camo all over the stage, corpse painted, black beat mayhem, Lucifer himself would have been honoured to have been on the quest list, but then again, he'd probably wait for their upcoming tour with gorgorth, but they would definitely be worth him rising from hell to come see, HAIL SATAN! HAIL ARTISIAN! BLAUS!
9/10

Shallow Intentions
I like a lot of folk metal and I fucking love these guys, and it always goes down better when the crowd is plastered so moving these guys to a late slot due to last minute line-up issues was a fantastic idea! The whole crowd is going fucking wild from the second they kick in to their first song, and after taking some photo's I didn't move from the front for the majority of their set. Every track played was a worthy tribute to the best of the best within their field, "Bleeding years" live sent shivers down my spine it was so good. Their covers Of Finntroll's "Trollhammeren and Amon Amarth's "Pursuit Of Vikings" had everyone in the house screaming along and throwing horns and fists everywhere! Archaic Squid, joined them on stage, just at the point where I was thinking of doing the same myself, and I dare say many a vocalist was ready to join in on the epic outing of one of Weymouth's finest! Be warned guy's at the Gathering, I may not be able to help myself! SKOL!
9/10

Bloodshot Dawn
When attempting do describe precisely just how good these guys are, I realised that the word that is worthy of these guys is yet to be invented! So basically, in the Word's of vocalist Josh, as soon as their set began! BBBLLLAAAAAAAUUUUSSSSSSS!!
Life has many great questions, How was Stonehenge built? What are we here for? Is Varg Vikernes a legend or just a lunatic? Why did the ancient egyptians allegedly draw spacemen? I would like to add another question to this list! WHY THE FUCK HAVEN'T BLOODSHOT DAWN BEEN SWEPT UP BY A FUCKING HUGE LABEL YET? No offence to the queens but these guys should be playing Wacken, Hellfest & Bloodstock! They are so fucking good! Seriously! These guys are the best Metal band in the Southwest by a long way in my opinion, literally the perfect balanced death metal formula.
They have all the dirt, anger and brutality of traditional death metal but with a very modern unique sound. They successfully incorporate melody and technicality into their mix without overdoing it, and losing that true extreme factor like so many other tech death bands are doing nowadays! The guitars are fantastic, the drum's make you feel like your head is about to explode, and the vocals make you want to go on a killing spree. All delivered with so much personality and passion! I saw them a year ago and they were awesome then, but this year at Finnstock, Bloodshot Dawn pulled off one of the finest live performances I've seen by any band on any level, and to be present to see them end the final day, of one of the best weekend's of my life was an honour beyond words! Thank you so much!
10/10
Thank you also to Lorraine, Ewan, Squid, & everyone else involved in making it such an amazing event and making us feel right at home, and proving that the Underground is still alive!
Overall ferstival Rating based on pure mathematics 8.25/10

and the following year! ie 2009 BLOODSHOT DAWN did play Bloodstock!

My First EP Review - Flayed Disciple 26/01/09

2010-02-12T17:36:00.001Z

my first ever review! posted on myspace.com/wyldstonerp 26/01/09

Hello my friends, and welcome to the first ever Wyldstone EP review.
(Hopefully the first of many. Get your CD's to Wyldstone Metal now!)

I have never reviewed an EP before, for journalistic purposes, but when this beautifully disgusting slice of SW Metal landed on my doorstep, I had to tell the world, as these guys need to be heard!

Upon hearing this CD I suddenly became possessed by the urge to perform an abortion, eat the remains, get drunk, kill the mother then piss on her grave…
…which is exactly how true death metal should make you feel in my opinion, and these “intestine chewing” nutjobs do not disappoint, and have the formula just right.

Right from the offset, with a demented pig torture sample coming at the start of the title track “Drawn Viscera” everything about this release scream’s huge potential. Very similar to the likes of Dying Fetus, Origin, Cannibal Corpse and Welsh death legends Desecration (who they are playing with soon, DO NOT MISS THAT ONE),

So if you like your death metal “like it used to be” you’d be a fool not to check out this fine example of groovy, dirty (and possibly drug induced) westcountry extreme.

The name, the EP, it’s artwork, the whole package is spot on.
....So “Scrape up the crispy entrails , slash out the corpse bucket” and get yourself ready to grind because these guys are the real deal. Twas a pleasure doing business with you my friends, 8/10.

Soulfallen - Grave New World CD Review

2010-02-12T17:34:00.001Z

Soulfallen – Grave New World – OFF Records (Finland) – 2009

I first stumbled upon Soulfallen early 2008, and within about 5 minutes I was hooked. Within days I acquired their debut album “World Expiration” and I can honestly say that it was one of my finest metal purchase’s of 2008. “Death Of The Tyrant” I now regard as one of my favourite songs of all time, (check out the video on youtube now, that’s amazing too) and the rest of the album was of an equally high standard. I’ve been looking forward to this album a lot, so upon setting the disc up to play, the question now is! Can these guys keep up this pace….?

…..and as before with their first album, within 5 minutes the answer beyond all doubt is hell Yeah! It is true to the first album buts shows that key element of progress that is essential to the longevity of any bands appeal. It is so pure, yet so unique, so uplifting and exchanting, yet still blended it in perfectly at all times with that brutal edge that all metalheads thrive on! The lyrics top of the mix perfectly, very real, very dark, and very deep, this top notch poetic blend of philosophy and psychology, has clearly had a lot of effort, thought and I dare say even a slice of frontman, Kai Leikola’s soul put into it. Combined with the music, the overall audio experience Soulfallen provide on this latest release is literally breathtaking!

You really can’t put, just how good this band are into words, and truly do their work justice. But every true metal fan should check this band out now. The combined impact of the first two albums is fast making Soulfallen one of my favourite bands, and I predict very good things for them in the future. The right break and these guys will be wowing the crowd’s at Bloodstock,, Wacken, Hellfest and all the other great European Metal festivals!

To sum things up , I’d say they have the epic feel, of bands such as Wintersun and Dark Tranquillity, with the blackened styles and euphoria of bands like Dimmu Borgir and Dissection, with and a slight hint of that eerie abstract side you experience when listening to Nevermore or Opeth thrown in for good measuring. The end result being an outstanding sinergistic blend of Black and Death metal!

Standout tracks I’d say would be, the title track, “Grave New World”, track 7 “Embrace The Scythe”, one hell of track, which would be an amazing rollercoaster soundtrack. (You’ll have to listen to it to truly understand what I mean by that, but it would have to be a pretty good rollercoaster to justify claiming this one as it’s own). And last but by no means least the final track of the album “We Are The Sand”, their most beautiful song to date. The power of this song literally had me tingling all over. So much atmosphere, so much emotion, yet still so metal. Lars Eikind’s addition as guest vocalist on this track is phenomenal, making the track definitely a fine way to finish off this outstanding example of metal evolution! An absolute pleasure to review.

Final Verdict - 10/10