News

Profanation's debut EP announced by Iron Bonehead Productions: "Like the unholy offspring of Hadez and Necrovore with more than a hint of the eldritch grind of Terrorizer and England's Doom..."

March 1, 2024

Iron Bonehead Productions is proud to present the striking debut EP from France’s Profanation, ‘Skull Crushing Violence’, on CD and 12″ vinyl formats.

Hailing from France’s ever-thriving Death Metal scene, Profanation are a new band of old souls. Many will recognize lead guitarist Kev Desecrator from Deströyer 666, but he also maintains labelmates Venefixion – with whom vocalist Profane Alex has recently been added as a live member – as well as Sépulcre and Scumslaught, and fellow guitarist A.M. also plays in Regarde les Hommes Tomber. Along with drummer Sinistre, the quartet create vile, ultraviolent Death Metal in a most ancient manner.

Of course, their debut recording says it all on the tin: ‘Skull Crushing Violence’, which is exactly what you get for 20 terrorizing minutes. Like the unholy offspring of Hadez and Necrovore with more than a hint of the eldritch grind of Terrorizer and England’s Doom, Profanation whip forth a fury like few others. Everything here on ‘Skull Crushing Violence’ goes into the red – as it should, to honor the promise of its title – and the intensity suitably takes on an otherworldly aspect as it flits between abyss-ward blast and grave-shoveling D-beat. Meanwhile, utterly OTT solos shoot across the record like missiles flying across a war-torn landscape.

Want 666% ARRRGGGHHH?!? Profanation give it to you with ‘Skull Crushing Violence’!

More info: Profanation; Iron Bonehead Productions;

Me Saco Un Ojo Records and Dark Descent to release new Engulfed album: "Every second of this ruthless offering is a feast of vitriol..."

March 1, 2024

Me Saco Un Ojo Records, in conspiracy with Dark Descent Records, is proud to present the highly anticipated second album of Turkey’s Engulfed, ‘Unearthly Litanies of Despair’. Me Saco Un Ojo will handle the vinyl releases while Dark Descent will handle the CD and tape versions.

Formed in 2010 and with two EPs and a full length of supreme Death Metal under their belts, Turkish masters of brutality Engulfed return with their sophomore album.

Atmospherics, savagery, technicality, and morbidity. These four words should all spring to mind if you know Engulfed, and if you do not, get acquainted. Surging forth impenetrable waves of ferocity, this band spawns from the hotbed of extreme music that is Turkey. Their unfaltering bouts of blasting drums and convulsive riffing should have any fan of true Death Metal gripped from the get-go of this monstrous offering. Warped vocals and even-more-contorting instrumental work conjoins in malformed excellence to present some of the band’s fiercest tracks to date. If tremendous but hostile and savage music is what you seek, then read on and be a part of these Unholy Litanies of Despair, an album title promising exactly what is delivered.

Every second of this ruthless offering is a feast of vitriol, pulverizing all in the path of Engulfed’s unforgiving music: a rare example of a band whose technicality is not their downfall, relying on claustrophobic atmospheres and gargantuan levels of malice while playing superbly. The showmanship is tasteful and the songs never suffer for it, rather leaving you in awe of their undeniable talents which span the whole lineup. Moments of mournful gloom inject some dynamic into the total battery and mayhem, while the drive of this album is infallible and never loses momentum for a second, building tension and mood with its formidable and forceful delivery. Right until its dying breaths, Engulfed’s new offering is a lesson in visceral Death Metal magnificence that must be learned by all.

More info: Engulfed; Dark Descent Records; Me Saco un Ojo Records;

Helldprod ready to release Speedkiller's debut on cassette: "...old school to the bone madness filled with classical vibes according to the metallic heritage"

February 29, 2024

Helldprod Records sets the 8th of March as the release date for the Speedkiller’s debut album, ‘Inferno’, in cassette format.

Thrash for Death…

Speedkiller’s name and music shouldn’t be forgotten, old school to the bone madness filled with classical vibes according to the metallic heritage. Adding a lot of the Minas Gerais hellish warmth in their steel veins, the formula couldn’t be closer from being right, as they nailed it in their debut ‘Midnight Vampire’ released in 2020.

Four years passed and Speedkiller’s are back with a new reeking killing power thrash attack of an album intitule ‘Inferno’. According to these 9 unholy prayers, that will, for sure, crack the bowels of heaven and spit fire towards the fallen angel’s crown, a huge evolution towards production is deeply notice, giving the overall sound of ‘Inferno’ a massive contribution to a more accurate potential of the band’s musical composition and therefor outstanding quality.

Embed in an organic ritual, the sophomore ‘Inferno’ gathers heaviness, aggressiveness, and a hurricane of melodies ready to assault your head banging and horned fist into everlasting glory. Fast as the swing of an axe, these flames will burst in your ears and burn the night sky, covering it with grey smoke under the brightness of the pale stars.

No doubt that Speedkiller new opus is full of force allowing them to hit the world’s metal pyre main stage, showing no mercy and condemning all to stare into their own private Hell!

More info: Speedkiller; Helldprod Records;

Magistraal keen to release debut EP: "Dutch evil produced in three depraved episodes, each embracing its own godless theme, but which merge into a creeping, lugubrious muck."

February 29, 2024

On April 14th internationally, Magistraal will digitally self-release their debut EP, ‘Fantoom van de Deemsterburcht’. The EP will also be available through Zwaertgevegt on vinyl format as one half of a split release.

Magistraal: a jet-black concoction sprung from the depths of the Shadow Mountains, fashioned in the gruesome sight of the eight hateful eyes of Shelob and beautified by the enchanting fingers of Fëanor, maestro of architecture. Cultivated by two opposing, ancient powers: she is mistress of the cold, dark, drizzly existence and embittered by a lonely exile, cast into a darkness where her shrill voice was banished for an eternity; he was a powerful designer of splendor, an inventor of works of art and a superior preserver of light, a perfectionist whose work proved to be a refuge for the apostate.

In reality, the duo – originating from the Netherlands – do not want to reveal much about themselves, comparing a presence in the scene to an enigmatic and mystical existence of Black Metal in the ’90s, reawakened in 2023. Magistraal is an expression of fantasy, dreamscapes, the power of imagination, emotion and kinship, audible in hidden lyrics underpinned by an atmospheric-yet-raw approach to workings in dark music.

The duo’s first expression is the EP ‘Fantoom van de Deemsterburcht’, penned and crafted in 2023. Here, Magistraal cultivate a wide arsenal of tempo, rhythm, and instrumental styles for the listener – where the title track ‘Fantoom van de Deemsterburcht’ and the eruption of ‘Waar leed zich eeuwig voedt’ are presented with overwhelming violence, the centerpiece of this allotment of music is a constructive opus of 11 minutes of growing madness in the form of ‘Mijn branded licht’. Dutch evil produced in three depraved episodes, each embracing its own godless theme, but which merge into a creeping, lugubrious muck.

More info: Magistraal; Zwaertgevegt;

Antagonyze and Chaos Records combine forces to release 'Interpertations of the Unknown Wilderness': "For those who wisely prize the '90s works of Immolation, The Chasm, Shub Niggurath, and Mexico's Cenotaph..."

February 28, 2024

Chaos Records is proud to present Antagonyze’s highly anticipated debut album, ‘Interpretations of the Unknown Wilderness’, on CD and cassette tape formats.

Formed in 2019 and hailing from the always-thriving Chilean underground, Antagonyze are a Death Metal band founded by guitarists Ignacio Riveros and Francisco Álvarez and bassist Mateo Gutiérrez. Soon enough, they began their first compositions and later recruited drummer Moisés Aguayo and the ex-vocalist to complete the formation. By the end of that first year, Antagonyze achieved some support in the local underground metal scene with some live shows. Not long after, the band recording their first work, ‘Echoes From Soul’, a demo cassette that was originally released in May 2020. This was an independent release and was thus limited to 33 copies. After that, the label Infernal South Productions offered to release the demo in a pro cassette version, which came July 2020, limited to 140 copies.

Due to the pandemic, Antagonyze were forced to stop their activities, but during this period, the band continued working on new compositions from home. By late 2020, the ex-vocalist left the band, and in 2021, the drummer Moisés Aguayo had time-commitment troubles due to his job. In this moment, the band recruited Alvaro Mora as new vocalist and Nicolás Cavada as drummer, both from the city Los Ángeles, which is near to their home of Nacimiento. This lineup boost proved to be a boon, as Antagonyze began changing lyrics and adding new drum rhythms and nuances to preexisting songs. With this new formation, the band began to play more shows and gain more followers, sharing the stage with the likes of fellow Chilean bands Serpent Throne, Apostasy, Repugnatory, Soul Rot, Strigoi, Radamanthys, and Peru’s Morbo Satan among others.

By the end of 2022, Antagonyze decided to re-record the best songs of ‘Echoes From Soul’ and add new songs to create a new full-length work titled ‘Interpretations of the Unknown Wilderness’. Thick and throttling, ‘Interpretations of the Unknown Wilderness’ more than lives up to its title, unleashing a torrent of twisted & twisting Death Metal of a most ’90s vintage. Frequently dipping into doomier corridors, Antagonyze always whip forth forward momentum, varying their attack with violence and class, particularly in their lead work, which remains richly melodic in its bottomless darkness. The production, too – recorded by Felipe Cadenas at Estudio Chains, with mixing & mastering by Ignacio Riveros – makes these ten Interpretations hit that much harder and with devastating dynamics.

For those who wisely prize the ’90s works of Immolation, The Chasm, Shub Niggurath, and Mexico’s Cenotaph, go further south of Heaven with Antagonyze’s ‘Interpretations of the Unknown Wilderness’!

More info: Antagonyze; Chaos Records;

Purity Through Fire unleashes Granitader's debut album: "...their continually cresting surge recalls pagan touchstones like Windir, Falkenbach, or Germany's Horn closer to home, as well as Drudkh's more cinematic moments"

February 22, 2024

Purity Through Fire is proud to present Granitader’s highly anticipated debut album, ‘Der Wald zwischen den Welten’, on digipack CD format.

One of the most fully formed Black Metal entities of recent times, Granitader burst into brilliance with their debut full-length, ‘Der Wald zwischen den Welten’. After but an EP last year, the German quintet’s first full-length displays a masterful grasp of songwriting and dynamics as well as confidence and charisma to spare.

Granitader are old souls who exude the effervescence of the new; their continually cresting surge recalls pagan touchstones like Windir, Falkenbach, or Germany’s Horn closer to home, as well as Drudkh’s more cinematic moments.

However, the wind beneath the wings of ‘Der Wald zwischen den Welten’ is the album’s overarching theme: a homage to their – as well as Purity Through Fire’s – home area of Erzgebirge, the Ore Mountains that are an UNESCO world heritage site, as well as older German history. Truly, it all comes together as one breathtaking blast of classically austere German Black Metal, but poignantly brimming with a heroic, almost-positive aspect that’s simply impossible to deny. The spiraling lead-work is categorically sublime, and helps elevate Granitader to the top of today’s Pagan Black Metal pack.

Completing this complete package is the professional & powerful production, encasing their bravado in a sheen wholly befitting of its majesty. Let Granitader guide you through ‘Der Wald zwischen den Welten’!

More info: Granitader; Purity Through Fire;

Coffin Curse and Memento Mori team up for new offering: "For those who worship such vital follow-ups as 'Legion', 'Retribution', and 'Blessed are the Sick', Coffin Curse's 'The Continuous Nothing' is for you!"

February 21, 2024

In their endless quest to push and support current underground acts that perpetuate the odor of vintage Death Metal, on April 22nd internationally, Memento Mori is proud to present Coffin Curse’s highly anticipated second album, ‘The Continuous Nothing’, on CD format.

Although Chile’s Coffin Curse came into being in 2012 as a side-project of Inanna’s Max Neira, it didn’t take long for the band to assert their own identity. A demo was released that same year, to be followed by a handful of EPs and splits, all before culminating in Coffin Curse’s debut album for Memento Mori, ‘Ceased to Be’. A fresh breath of old air, ‘Ceased to Be’ was as exemplary of 1990 Death Metal than it was 2020 “Death Metal.” In their “regressive” / elevated state of mind, Death Metal back then possessed charisma and songwriting, chops and more than a bit of madness. Maybe class, too? Compared to so much riff-salad wank that’s followed, Coffin Curse were indeed classy.

Now, four years later, Coffin Curse are back to reassert that classiness with ‘The Continuous Nothing’. Thankfully, LP#2 is a logical continuation of that not-inconsiderable debut: timeless, taut, and terrorizing, actual songwriting is pushed to the fore with ceaselessly catchy riffing and an abundance of haunting-the-chapel leads. Also thankfully, Coffin Curse are unafraid of displaying their influences here – Morbid Angel, Deicide, and Immolation during their turn-of-the-’90s heydays, as well as the viciousness of founding fathers Possessed, Massacre, and Chile’s Pentagram – but once again, the duo’s charisma pushes ‘The Continuous Nothing’ into the realm of inspired rather than “inspired by,” as each of the album’s nine songs surges & slices with maximum memorability and quite-literally-dangerous execution. But, through it all, ‘The Continuous Nothing’ engages because of its classic / classy songwriting and none-more-powerful production, where each instrument is organic and almost-overwhelming in its true-to-life physicality. No popcorn or punch-ins here!

Once again, Daniel Hermosilla (Nox Fragor Art) provides the dark-psychedelic icing on the cake with his cover artwork. For those who worship such vital follow-ups as ‘Legion’, ‘Retribution’, and ‘Blessed are the Sick’, Coffin Curse’s ‘The Continuous Nothing’ is for you!

More info: Coffin Curse; Memento Mori;

Iron Bonehead Productions and Heresiarch team up for second album: "...Heresiarch sound as martial as ever, but the lava now flows in palatably unique ways, all without compromising their core aesthetic."

February 20, 2024

Iron Bonehead Productions is proud to present Heresiarch’s highly anticipated second album, ‘Edifice’, on CD and vinyl LP formats.

For over 15 years now, New Zealand’s Heresiarch have patiently crafted a body of work that has come to transcend their early influences. Though lineups have shifted during that time, led by founding vocalist N.H. and enhanced by guitarist C.S. in 2013, Heresiarch have wisely taken their time with recordings and prized quality over quantity. The band’s debut album, ‘Death Ordinance’, arrived in 2017 after a trio of savage short-lengths. A new rhythm section took root following that album’s release, and a couple splits in the ensuing years honed their doomed ‘n’ barbaric sound into something more molten and ominous.

And now arrives that megaton payload of devastation, Heresiarch’s second album, elegantly titled ‘Edifice’. If there were any doubts that the band were but yet another toneless ‘n’ tired “War Metal” troupe, the New Zealanders trounce any and all trepidation with exceptionally seismic songwriting.

Here on ‘Edifice’, the parameters of Heresiarch’s sound – Death metal Muscle, Black Metal atmosphere, Grindcore aggression – are all in devastating harmony, creating a hydra-headed beast that betrays a wealth of true-yet-twisted ideas.

More than just safely evading easy categorization (which is often mere doublespeak for “pleasing all constituents”), the quartet lay bare a landscape of texture titanic in its heft and foreboding in its effect, seamlessly winding through minefields both sonic and psychic and eventually culminating in a grandiose two-part finale in the equally compellingly titled ‘Hubris and Decline’ and ‘Militate Pyrric Collapse’.

For sure, Heresiarch sound as martial as ever, but the lava now flows in palatably unique ways, all without compromising their core aesthetic. Indeed, one could say they’ve finally found order through chaos.

The possibilities of life’s destruction are endless for those who wander before Heresiarch’s ‘Edifice’.

More info: Heresiarch; Iron Bonehead Productions;

Purity Through Fire and Worship Tapes to release debut album Ad Mortem: "...the gleaming chrome one witnesses on 'In Honorem Mortis' is but the blade of their sword about to deliver its fatal blow"

February 20, 2024

Purity Through Fire is proud to present Ad Mortem’s highly anticipated debut album, ‘In Honorem Mortis’, on CD, A5 digipack and vinyl LP. Worship Tapes will take care of the cassette.

If there’s one certainty in these uncertain times, it’s that Purity Through Fire will continue to raise the banner of nowadays German Black Metal: proud and pure in its expression, honoring the past whilst not being shackled to it, and evincing a professionalism that doesn’t sacrifice true underground spirit. Their latest executioners are Ad Mortem, who’ll be familiar to those who caught their Purity Through Fire-released split with standard-bearers Mavorim in that very uncertain year of 2020. While their split-mates are true titans of today’s Teutonic Black Metal scene, Ad Mortem proved to be a poignant counterpart, evincing an undeniable physicality that remained hook-heavy and hummable.

Now they’ve returned to fulfill their still-substantial potential with the debut album ‘In Honorem Mortis’. Here, Ad Mortem dispense with any subtlety and go for the throat quickly and calculatingly. While the eight hymns comprising their debut album hover around the five-minute mark, everything on ‘In Honorem Mortis’ sounds irrepressibly urgent. Mind you, the quartet’s songwriting isn’t categorically “all speed, all the time” – their shifting of gears, from strength & honor gallop to pistons-pumping blast, is as fluid as it comes – but their execution of such puts Ad Mortem in rarefied territory: seamlessly flowing, even swinging, making their martial thrust all the more mesmerizing. Of course, the German tongue makes their Black Metal bite harder, and wrapped in polished-yet-powerful production, the gleaming chrome one witnesses on ‘In Honorem Mortis’ is but the blade of their sword about to deliver its fatal blow. Bow before Ad Mortem and feel their sweet release!

More info: Ad Mortem; Purity Through Fire; Worship Tapes;

Crucifier to unleash new album via Iron Bonehead Productions: "'Led Astray' is a masterclass in memorable, metal riffing and twisted rhythmic thrust."

February 13, 2024

Iron Bonehead Productions is proud to present the highly anticipated third album of America’s Crucifier, ‘Led Astray’, on CD and vinyl LP formats on the 12th of April 2024.

One of the longest-running entities in the American underground, Crucifier was formed in 1990 by vocalist/drummer Cazz Grant. While myriad lineups would come and go – and the band’s eventual debut album, ‘Stronger Than Passing Time’, wouldn’t be released until 2003 – Crucifier have kept consistent to their blasphemous, Blackened Death Metal style steeped in the truly ancient and most underground ways.

Now, two years after their weird & wild Say Your Prayers mini-album, Crucifier align with Iron Bonehead once again for the release of their third full-length, ‘Led Astray’. Taking the wandering yet fully locked-in songwriting of that mini to its ultimate conclusion, ‘Led Astray’ is a masterclass in memorable, metal riffing and twisted rhythmic thrust.

As is their signature, Crucifier sound positively primal here but never primitive; while these nine screeds of blasphemy might confuse or insult normcore listeners, there’s an extremely considered & calculated delirium behind their blackened devilry. As such, the “tight looseness” that’s characterized Crucifier’s work to date gets sharpened to an enviable degree as these nine labyrinths surge and storm with a paradoxical / perverse sense of class.

Credit the latter largely to the jaw-dropping dual lead-work across ‘Led Astray’: an element that’s been bubbling in the Crucifier cauldron for years, but which really reaches a superlative level here. Of course, Grant’s vocals are as diabolic as ever, seemingly coming from every direction and hackle-raising in their articulation.

Crucifier hereby have delivered a modern classic of Blackened Death metal in ‘Led Astray’!

More info: Crucifier; Iron Bonehead Productions;