umbra vitae - shadow of life

a death metal project of jacob bannon of converge fame? that sounds like it was up my alley. i pre-ordered earlier this year and after listening to the single "blood blossoms" it became my most anticipated release of 2020. in the end the album couldn't live up to the expectations the single arose but it is still a damn good death metal record - or the closest to death metal bannon and his super group could get.

the red/white galaxy vinyl is an indie store exclusive and limited to 500 copies. released via deathwish inc.

hollow world - exanimate

the label deathcore from australia is a proof of quality in itself. no exception with these guys called hollow world. this is their self-released debut full length from 2017. one year later they gave us this rad vinyl pressing limited to only 50 copies. if you like the black dahlia murder or carnifex, then this is for you!

the drowning - the radiant dark

this is my first experience with the drowning and the label transcending obscurity alike. the band hails from wales and plays some highly infective melodic death doom metal. the label resides in indonesia and produces some of the loveliest colour vinyl around. a really enjoyable record and hopefully not the last one from both of them. vinyl edition limited to 100 copies.

hatebreed - weight of the false self

the veterans of hardcore are back with a new slab of greatness. it took hatebreed four years to release "weight of the false self" but after a few spins, I can confirm that it was worth the wait. will see if it stands the test of time. this is an euro pressing on nuclear blast nd exclusively sold through emp mailorder. limited to 300 copies and looking sharp.

august burns red - guardians

august burns red is one of those bands which constantly deliver. however the last two records felt a bit dull to me. not that they have been bad quality wise but i felt like the sensation had worn off. anyway, with this album they returned to form although they didn't change the recipe. they simply wrote a pretty damn good album.

of feather and bone - sulfuric disintegration

i am new to of feather and bone. i became aware of them when profound lore announced the pre-order for their new record "sulfuric disintegration". the colour vinyl went before i even checked out one song. so when the band came around the corner with this self-released die hard tape housed in a vhs case, i couldn't possibly say no.

just look how much detail went into this release. from the alternate cover art for the tape cassette, over the button/patch/emanel pin/sticker/poster to the "death metal" sticker on the vhs cover - everything is so well thought out and nicely crafted. one of the coolest packaging for a physical release i have ever seen.

spectral voice - eroded corridors of unbeing

this is death/doom perfection right here. i waited quite some time for my copy to arrive from dark descent records but it was well worth the wait. musically this brings you right into the darkest void of unbeing you can(not) imagine and aesthetically, i mean, just look at that galaxy merge vinyl...

astralborne - at eternity's end

boy, what a goddamn good melodic death metal album. riff for days, melodies for months and music for years or so... flys a bit under the radar it seems but if you have the chance to get your hands on this, i recommend to pick up astralborne's beautiful debut full length "at eternity's end" right away.

spirit adrift - enlightened in eternity

the new spirit adrift arrived with high expectations of mine. after thorough spins i can say that they were not fully met. there are some real pearls among the tracks but also a few pretty generic songs. they lost a bit their sense of mystery in favour for more straight up classic metal structures. doesn't appeal to me too much. anyway, still enjoy this record. this is an eu version by century media. 2020.

end - splinters of an ever-changing face

ok, i didn't see that coming. i didn't know end before all the pre-order hype went down at some point earlier this year. i checked them and secured me a copy but it wasn't until it finally arrived and i gave it proper spins, where i realised the greatness of this angry as fuck metallic hardcore babe. go check it out, is my only advice. closed casket activities. 2020.