Weekly Spotlight, Week 18 / 2025
- Thomas
- Apr 29
- 6 min read
Set aside some time, 'cause this week will see you thoroughly occupied with releases from Caustic Wound, Behölder, Changeling, Phantom, Sijjin, Cadaver, The Great Sea, Martoriator and Pagan Altar.
But first, let's give a quick mention to some of the bigger names:
Caliban – Back From Hell
Cancer – Inverted World
Coffin Feeder – Big Trouble
Conan – Violence Dimension
Employed To Serve – Fallen Star
Eluveitie – Ànv
Ghost – Skeleta
Kardashev – Alunea
Landmvrks – The Darkest Place I've Ever Been
Machine Head – Unatøned
Caustic Wound – Grinding Mechanism Of Torment
Genre: Death metal/grindcore
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5
Country of origin: USA
You take one look at that depraved album cover and you know this is gonna be an ugly, ear-defiling abomination. You just hope that it's gonna be a GOOD, ugly, ear-defiling abomination. Spoiler alert: It is. Caustic Wound play filthy, shadow-dwelling death metal first and foremost, but in the mayfly-attention-span-format of grindcore. Though, while it's a savage, dirt-covered, rotting monstrosity to the core, it's not completely inaccessible, nor does the production make it sound like an echo bouncing off a cave wall. The riffs are meaty, the squeals are sharp, the bass is very much present and menacing, and the vocals sound like they're hacking up innards piece by shredded piece. The only real surprise is the 6:48-long finisher that dives into funeral doom for about three minutes, before returning to the manic assault.
Highlights: "Blood Battery" and "The Bleed Rail"
Behölder – In The Temple Of The Tyrant
Genre: Epic doom/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Country of origin: USA
Gotta love it when someone manages to join the adventurous, bold qualities of heavy metal with the heaviness and gravitas of doom in such a smooth way that they're seamlessly blended - always complementing each other and never pulling in different directions. Behölder add to it with the light-hearted fantasy-worship of power metal, but to such a moderate degree that it never breaks off from the purposeful, mid-tempo trot and dark-ish tone that is so important for the immersion. It's being obvious about its D&D theme, and not at all taking it seriously, but also not treating it as silly, instead leaning into the role playing aspect and really getting stuck in the story.
Highlights: "A Pale Blood Sky" and "Draconian (SLAVE OR MASTER)"
Changeling – Changeling
Genre: Progressive death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5
Country of origin: Germany
This is a wild one. Combining the styles of such bands as Obscura, Fractal Universe, Devin Townsend and maybe even a little bit of Igorrr, you know it's not gonna be a thing that goes easy on you. While it's pretty easily definable as progressive, melodic death metal, it's not even the slightest bit interested in sticking to the same kind of approach for more than a third of a song at a time. That doesn't do wonders for its coherence, but that's something that the people whom this thing was meant for won't care too much about. Being mainly a solo project, but attracting musicians from several prestige projects, parts of it is pretty shreddy, but the overall feel is still not of this being a show-off-y thing. The compositions are adventurous, and the heavy bits genuinely heavy, although not exactly brutal. If you're a fan of any of the aforementioned bands, I'm sure you'll thoroughly dig this.
Highlights: "Changeling" and "World? What World?"
Phantom – Tyrants Of Wrath
Genre: Speed/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5
Country of origin: Mexico
These guys really get the faithful/fun balance of creating engaging speed metal. Yes, you shouldn't take it too seriously, and just throw your wildest, rowdiest energy at it, and at the same time, in order to really level it up, you gotta know which elements to weave in that will complement the base style and add another dimension to the listening experience. For Phantom, that is thrash shred, heavy metal fantasy and a dash of death metal viciousness. There's even the tiniest hint of a blackened edge, but it doesn't do much to dampen the mood. Like the skeletal-demonic warrior on the album cover, it's here to frantically swing the axe, laughing and shrieking gleefully in the process, and would love for you to join in.
Highlights: "The Tower of Seth" and "Thunderbeast"
Sijjin – Helljjin Combat
Genre: Death/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Country of origin: Germany/Spain
Do you wish your classic thrash metal was a bit more evil, without breaking out of the early 80s style or becoming chaotically heavy or noisy? Sijjin has just the thing for you. It lights a bit of hellfire under that speed-like proto thrash sound, then half-morphs into the goat-demon shape of raw, blasphemous, old school death metal. It's a very focused, unadorned, tunnel-vision kind of sound, so if it works for you for a minute, it will keep you engaged throughout. The guitar work is semi-intricate and certainly not content with the path of least resistance, and the drums and bass happily follow suit, making for an exploratory interplay that also knows when to settle into familiar, satisfying patterns. The production is a bit flat, but results in a fairly distinct, purposeful sound, so I'm not complaining. It's plenty irreverent, and decently varied.
Highlights: "Fear Not the Tormentor" and "Dakhma Curse"
Cadaver – Hymns Of Misanthropy
Genre: Experimental death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Country of origin: Norway
Essentially a collection of unreleased material from the band's early career, it is based on a number of tracks first recorded roughly and unfinished back in 1991. These have now been revisited and given the necessary finish to complete the album such as it might have been according to the original vision. So new? Yes and no, but it is regardless both a fun look back into the band's past, as well as a fully functioning and concise experimental death metal album for today. It leans significantly more into psychedelic and jazz-like free-spiritedness than 2023's "The Age of the Offended", without going completely bonkers. While not every song is quite as noteworthy, it's a fun and nostalgic detour for the band that is certainly worth the effort of unveiling from obscurity.
Highlight: "From the Past"
The Great Sea – Noble Art Of Desolation
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Country of origin: Germany
As black metal goes, even the atmospheric kind, this is fairly gentle. Even with its raspy, primitive, Darkthrone-nodding side that is prevalent on most tracks, the edge of it is cushioned by layers of contemplative, dreamy melody. The tone remains hollow-eyed and fairly pessimistic, but travels far, reaching out for new horizons. It's a blend of old and new that never sets off for too long in any distinct direction away from the core sound. It's not experimental or particularly varied, but also certainly not devoid of force or pathos. It's the kind that you can find yourself both headbanging to and getting glassy-eyed lost in.
Highlight: "No Peace Among Men"
Martoriator – Bloodpainted Visions Of Perpetual Conflict
Genre: Blackened death/war metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Country of origin: Italy
Set to the sound of air raid sirens and zipping bullets, Martoriator bring the carnage on their debut album. There is no joy to be found here, just the soul-and-body-crushing, hate-fueled onslaught of mechanized warfare. It's a sound that leans over you, blotting out all light, and methodically pulverizes everything in its path with rumbling death metal force. A few of the songs are a bit one-dimensional in their execution, but it still goes along well with the theme of repetitive hopelessness.
Highlight: "66 Tons of Armored Hatred"
Pagan Altar – Never Quite Dead
Genre: Heavy/doom metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5
Country of origin: England
NWOBHM outcasts Pagan Altar stick to their recipe of classic-doom-infused, 70s heavy metal. On "Never Quite Dead" they manage a highly refined expression where everything feels very considered and purposeful, and just a bit restrained. The sound isn't exactly clean, but clear, full and detailed, while generously allowing the retro vibe to shine through. They take it quite easy at points, going into extended, understated single-instrument-and-vocals sections, with a bit of added atmosphere. It doesn't do wonders for the progression, but it can be sublime to simply let trickle in through your ears. And then the riffs kick in again and you're instantly charmed.
Highlight: "Saints and Sinners"
Comments