Bonded Through Hate - "Doomsday : The Rise Of Valhalla"

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  Bonded Through Hate are a completely brutal death metal fueled 4 piece from Southington,CT. Their 5 song EP "Doomsday : The Rise Of Valhalla" was produced at Ear One Studios, whose past production endeavors include the likes of 100 Demons and 25 Ta Life amongst others. Fans of old school CT death metallers Tyrant Trooper, will be pleased to see guitarist Ron Kuzcuk and drummer Justin Lanteri back doing what they do best, and with the addition of vocalist Allyn Lopes and bassist Aaron Spring, this deadly combo brings forth slamming death metal with a classic hardcore groove, as evident in all 5 tracks on "Doomsday...". After a 20 second growling/screaming vocal intro reminiscent of the beginning of Slayer's classic "Hell Awaits", the brutality kicks in immediately with opening track "Killing Is My Name". This band is all about the riff. From it's furious, almost black metal paced verse, to it's groud shaking, crunchy chorus, the listener is then relentlessly pounded with a thumping breakdown that recalls early Machine Head(before the whole Nu-metal thing) and Crowbar at their absolute heaviest. "Doomsday : The Rise Of Valhalla", the EP namesake track is served up next with a slew of old school riffs that invoke the spirits of Barnes-era Cannibal Corpse and melt with the thick meaty riffs of Dismember in the chorus and bridge pieces. Plus, how can you NOT love a death metal song based around viking lore?! Guitarist Ron really taps into the classic "Buzzsaw" guitar tone, made famous by classic swedish bands like Entombed, Hypocrisy and the aforementioned Dismember. The bass really stands out in this recording and helps truly give these songs that extra sledgehammer-like pound, and puts the ultimate exclamation on the remarkable drumming showcased here. And lets not forget the frontman, who's range goes from a deep Glenn Benton-like growl, to a burning black metal blaze. When the vocal highs and lows are mixed here on this disk, and the band are blasting away in the back, you'd be hard pressed to find a tighter, more deadly band. "Alone In Flames" chugs along at a frenzied pace with break-neck speed, and only relents to make way to a pounding break at the midway mark for the band to show off their true hardcore roots. Think Suffocation meets Internal Bleeding for this track, tons of brutality with a huge helping of slam. "To Live Or Die" starts off ferociously, then gives way to a break sizzling with unadulterated Nola sludge. Bonded Through Hate make it sound effortless to transition from death metal insanity, to rugged hardcore riffery. "BTK" brings the slab of heaviness to an end, and if your a serial killer afficionado like myself, you are in for a treat here. A sample from the BTK movie where Kane Hodder(who more famously has made his name slaughtering tons of drunken, horn-dog teens as Jason Voorhees in the Friday the 13th series) plays the part of psycho maniac Dennis Rader aka the BTK(Bind, Torture, Kill) killer. The creepy sample ends and the listener is mauled with pure death metal riff-mania in the traditional style. For 4 minutes and 10 seconds the band pushes and pulls their musical momentum with a barrage of music that runs the gamut from thrash to death to hardcore. To think that this 5 song EP is just the beginning of what we can expect from Bonded Through Hate is quite the notion, all this reviewer can do is wait with anxiousness for the follow up. Keep up with the band at www.facebook.com/bondedthroughhate you can purchase copies of this CD and t-shirts as well directly from the band, and you can also buy this CD direct from http://www.amazon.com/. Give this band a "Like", spread their links around and add "Doomsday : The Rise Of Valhalla" to your collection immediately, I can guarantee you'll spin this disk to death!!! You can hear cuts from this disk every Thursday from 7pm to 10pm EST at http://www.brutalexistenceradio.com/.

Grim Legion - "Unholy Resurrection"

Grim Legion are a 3-piece old school death metal band from New Jersey. When I say old school, I mean it in the truest sense as this band was an originator in the tri-state area, blazing venues in the late 80's and early 90's. Grim Legion took a long hiatus until last year when they reformed, cleaned off the rust and recorded the 5-song EP "Unholy Resurrection" which I am reviewing for you now. "Through Godless Eyes" kicks this disk off with thick, doom-laden riffery then jumps into high gear with a tremolo driven verse and a deep, sludgy vocal growl that only a veteran to this style could effortlessly pull off. A huge, catchy open chorus and some ripping leads thrown into the mix here make this song one hell of a rager. "Necromajesty" is served up next, and this song drips with "Scream Bloody Gore"-era Death influence. Short and to the point, this 2:21 track will have you going back for more with it's frantic pace and speedy riffing. "Alien Predators" really shows off how tight the rythmn section of this band is. The thick wall of bass and drums here are massive and the Autopsy influence in this band especially rears it's rotten head here, with it's chunky, death/doom verses and choruses. "Dark Ritual" shows a little more of the bands melodic side, but dont get it wrong, just because there are some guitar harmonies and melodies doesnt mean this track lacks ferocity at all. This track brings to mind early Dismember in parts and shows the listener that Grim Legion arent just a one trick pony. "Eternal Torment" brings this EP to a close. Here Grim Legion give off more of a Thrash/Punk vibe, until we are hit by the doom fueled bridge and have our faces melted with screaming guitar leads. At just over 15 minutes in length, this 5 song disk wont leave your stereo once you throw it in, Grim Legion definitely leave you anxiously awaiting for another release, and if there's one this this band doesnt do, it's bore the listener with old hat and repitition. In a day and age where kids think death metal bands are supposed to look like emo kids and play nauseating break-downs every other measure, Grim Legion are back in the nick of time to show the youngins how it's really supposed to be done, the traditional way...the RIGHT way! Grim Legion prove with "Unholy Resurrection" that they are back with a vengeance, and this revived 3-piece are hellbent on injecting the local scene with some old school flavor and style. Fans of early Death, Autopsy, Dismember and Mausoleum will be loyal followers to the Grim Legion. You can find the band at www.facebook.com/grimlegion and email them at grimlegion666@hotmail.com the guys are working on a brand new full length album which should be available very soon, so keep your decaying ear to the ground for that! Until then you can hear cuts from this EP every Thursday evening from 7pm to 10pm EST at http://www.brutalexistenceradio.com/