Sororicide

Sororicide were from Reykjavik, Iceland and left us this little known album of down-tuned death metal goodness in 1991 before fading into obscurity some years later. This album belongs on this blog mainly due to its shoddy production values and the dark churning themes contained within. These guys definitely took their cues from some more well known contemporaries but their approach is so unique that it's totally forgivable. Don't make the mistake of passing this up. There's enough riffs and disharmony within to sink an island.

The Entity

Viper

Viper are pegged as an Iron Maiden clone and while that isn't necessarily a bad thing I think it's totally wrong. What you have here is mid-paced melodic speedmetal featuring pretty damn good lead guitar work and power metal vocals. They didn't reinvent the wheel by any means but this is a pretty choice selection of traditional '80s metal and really helped put Brazil's scene on the map. I think this album definitely stands on its own merits and warrants multiple listens over the years. One look at that cover and you know you're in store for an epic treat.

Soldiers of Sunrise

Total.Thrashing.Death

Simply put, this is pure zombie thrashing bliss from 1990. No posers allowed...

Cancer.Fucking.Cancer

Funebre

This is a great album produced by Finland's own Funebre. What we have here is some more early '90s death metal. The music itself has flawlessly executed tempo changes, monstrous riffing, and intricate solo work that doesn't overstay its welcome. Some detractors state that the production is simply ho-hum but as you know, most of the stuff I post here doesn't necessarily fall into the polished area of things. All the better though because with the less than stellar production Funebre creates a superb atmosphere on this release. When listening to this I can't shake the feeling of watching some sort of medieval warfare taking place right in front of me. O! the bloodied hacking of limbs...

Children of the Scorn

Nightmare

I love '80s epic themed metal. I'm not going to call this 'power metal' because that makes people think of bands like Dragonforce, Rhapsody, Symphony X or Edguy. What I'm talking about are bands like Manowar, Fifth Angel, Savatage, Cirith Ungol and Viper. Nightmare from France fall into this category and although this is their second full length album with a completely different singer it's easily my favorite release of theirs. The vocals truly soar on this album and are a perfect match for the catchy music and solos laid down by the rest of the band. Sometimes this is my favorite French album. Today is one of those days.

Power of the Universe

Cemetary

This is early '90s death metal from Sweden. The guitar tone on this is very weird but somehow adds to the great atmosphere on this release. The band later became shitty. At least they left us with this unheralded classic. I'm a sucker for good riffs and this is chock-full of 'em. Thanks Cemetary!

An Evil Shade of Grey

Pain

Thrash love songs? Leave it to Germany. The singer has a distinct raspy style and the riffs on here are awesome. Not everyone's cup of tea I'm sure but fuck 'em.

Insanity