CD

The Wild Hunt is Watain’s fifth full length (their first album on major Century Media, by the way), lasting for sixty three minutes.

The L.A. rockers ‘Venrez’ are back with their second album ‘American Illusion’. It’s a non-stop rock and roll album with tight rhythms, good riffs and a touch of grunge in it.

The band consists of singer ‘Steven Berez’ guitarists ‘Jason Womack’ and ‘Alex Kane’, bassist ‘Michael Bradford’ and drummer ‘Ed Davis’.

Formed in 1983, Testament is an American thrash metal band from Oakland, CA better know ass the bay area were the worlds best trash metal comes from. The current line up consist of vocalist Chuck Billy, guitarists Alex Skolnick and Eric Peterson, bassist Greg Christian, and drummer Paul Bostaph.

Earlier this year, I reviewed the excellent third full length by Swedish act Kongh (Sole Creation, also released via Agonia), but this review does not deal with a new album but with the band’s 2007-debut. The material was originally recorded for vinyl release via Sound Devastation at Teknikkompaniet with Peter Lundin, who worked with the band afterwards as well.

Formed in the mid-nineties, Los Angeles based Buckcherry burst into the scene in 1999 with a eponymous debut album that eventually reached gold. Their raw straight forward and honest sound was created by mixing punk, grunge and rock ‘n roll but without overthinking everything too much. From the beginning founding members Josh Todd (vocals) and Keith Nelson (guitar) were the creative force that led to hit singles such as the immortal party anthem ‘Lit Up’ and ‘For the Movies’.

Beginning this year Christian rockers Stryper signed a deal with Frontiers Records which resulted already in the release of ‘Second Coming’, an album with fourteen classic songs re-recorded plus two new songs. Now with ‘No More Hell To Pay’ they present a brand new original studio album and again with the original line-up of Michael Sweet (vocals/guitar), Oz Fox (guitar), Tim Gaines (bass), and Robert Sweet (drums).

Obliteration’s debut album Perpetual Decay, Tyrant Syndicate 2007, was probably my favourite Norwegian non-Black Metal album that very same year. Their second full length, Nekropsalms (label: Fysisk Format), was even awarded (in different mags, like Natt Og Dag), and voted as best album of the year (Osloprisen). It leaded to a tour in both Europe and North America, and the band could perform live on stage at different huge festivals.

Once upon a time in a galaxy far far away, there was an elite group of chaos warriors who have been plundering the galaxy with a boundless hatred of all things alive. They were called the Scumdogs of the Universe, and they grew in might and fury, the greatest weapon in the arsenal of their cosmic Master.

But they became too powerful, and too defiant, and for their cosmic crimes were banished to the most insignificant planet in the universe…the seething mud ball known as Earth.

Finally we have a new Zemial-album. The last one, In Monumentum, dates from 2006, so it means that Mister Jim ‘Archon Vorskaath Necroslaughter’ (also: ex-Varathron, Agatus, Alpha Centauri etc.) and his horde had made us waiting impatiently for too long. Not anymore now…

Although this American band started out as a Punk Rock act with Hardcore leanings, they grew more and more commercial over the years, first sliding their way into the Pop Punk world (with 2003's album Ocean Avenue as their break-though album).