Review by Yener on May 25, 2019.

When you think of black metal, Alabama isn't really one of the first places that comes to mind. However, a lot of people seem to forget that music is a universal language, and it doesn't matter where you're from to play and master a particular style. So, I was that much more excited when I learned that these guys weren't from Norway or Sweden.

I knew absolutely nothing about this band before I listened to this album. After running a bit of a background check, I can see that the two musicians on this album, Bryan and Jarvis, have been at it for quite a while, and have put their names on a number of releases. That alone set my expectations on the higher end of the spectrum as quality musicianship is not something I enjoy, but something I expect when listening to music, no matter what genre.

And this album, Apophis, does not disappoint. The level of musicianship is high, and the songwriting is mature and has a nice depth to it. The drums sound nice and organic and raw - a clear "fuck you" to the over triggered kits we are so used to hearing in modern metal. The cymbals sound like actual cymbals, and they placed nicely in the mix. It's strange how we usually tend to overlook these things, even though they are the most basic things when it comes to recording music. Drums that sound like drums - who would have thought?

While the guitar sound is not bad, it's not great, either. That's just my opinion, I would have preferred a bit of a meatier tone on this album. But the overall sound when mixed with the drums is good. It's clear enough, and loud enough. I guess they went with what they felt best, and I can totally respect that. Because no matter how great your guitar tone is, if it doesn't work well in the mix, then you simply don't use it and fit what does. That said, the overall sound and mix on the album is raw, but still very nice and organic. It sounds like actual humans playing the instruments, which is a very warm welcome if you ask me. The album sounds like it was recorded in the late 90's - and to me, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.

While the band is classified as black metal, and they certainly do have black metal riffs and sounds, they also offer so much more than that. If I were to compare them to another band, or who they remind me of, I would have to say Emperor. There's certainly no resemblance to bands like Marduk or Infernal War on here. Passion of Death is more mid-tempo, they don't really use speed and sheer power to get their point across, but instead they use different approach to arranges which makes everything a bit more interesting. I personally really, really loved the acoustic interludes in the songs, and actually, they are my favorite sections on the entire album. Jarvis is certainly a talented guy, and the acoustic stuff he has come up for on this album is simply beautiful, and very noteworthy. Most bands, when having an acoustic section, will keep them short - around 4 measures long. Here, they are much more thought out, and much more prominent. You can tell actual work and thought went into these passages, which I can always appreciate. 

The drumming is also just the way it's supposed to be. Bryan never goes overkill, and I'm glad he doesn't, because he plays for the music first and foremost, accenting riffs in the appropriate places and never playing out of place. While some may call that safe, I call it smart. This is not the kind of album to just have blast beats running all the way through it, as it would just ruin the atmosphere.

My only gripe with the album is that the entirety is pretty much the same tempo throughout. I would have liked to hear some blisteringly fast sections, and some doomy, crunching slow sections. I guess they just didn't feel like it or didn't think it was appropriate for what they were trying to achieve.

Overall, a very solid effort. I respect and admire the organic songwriting and production. Acoustic sections are incredible, and both members give a stellar performance throughout the album. Definitely worth investing some time into.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Review by Yener on May 25, 2019.

When you think of black metal, Alabama isn't really one of the first places that comes to mind. However, a lot of people seem to forget that music is a universal language, and it doesn't matter where you're from to play and master a particular style. So, I was that much more excited when I learned that these guys weren't from Norway or Sweden.

I knew absolutely nothing about this band before I listened to this album. After running a bit of a background check, I can see that the two musicians on this album, Bryan and Jarvis, have been at it for quite a while, and have put their names on a number of releases. That alone set my expectations on the higher end of the spectrum as quality musicianship is not something I enjoy, but something I expect when listening to music, no matter what genre.

And this album, Apophis, does not disappoint. The level of musicianship is high, and the songwriting is mature and has a nice depth to it. The drums sound nice and organic and raw - a clear "fuck you" to the over triggered kits we are so used to hearing in modern metal. The cymbals sound like actual cymbals, and they placed nicely in the mix. It's strange how we usually tend to overlook these things, even though they are the most basic things when it comes to recording music. Drums that sound like drums - who would have thought?

While the guitar sound is not bad, it's not great, either. That's just my opinion, I would have preferred a bit of a meatier tone on this album. But the overall sound when mixed with the drums is good. It's clear enough, and loud enough. I guess they went with what they felt best, and I can totally respect that. Because no matter how great your guitar tone is, if it doesn't work well in the mix, then you simply don't use it and fit what does. That said, the overall sound and mix on the album is raw, but still very nice and organic. It sounds like actual humans playing the instruments, which is a very warm welcome if you ask me. The album sounds like it was recorded in the late 90's - and to me, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.

While the band is classified as black metal, and they certainly do have black metal riffs and sounds, they also offer so much more than that. If I were to compare them to another band, or who they remind me of, I would have to say Emperor. There's certainly no resemblance to bands like Marduk or Infernal War on here. Passion of Death is more mid-tempo, they don't really use speed and sheer power to get their point across, but instead they use different approach to arranges which makes everything a bit more interesting. I personally really, really loved the acoustic interludes in the songs, and actually, they are my favorite sections on the entire album. Jarvis is certainly a talented guy, and the acoustic stuff he has come up for on this album is simply beautiful, and very noteworthy. Most bands, when having an acoustic section, will keep them short - around 4 measures long. Here, they are much more thought out, and much more prominent. You can tell actual work and thought went into these passages, which I can always appreciate. 

The drumming is also just the way it's supposed to be. Bryan never goes overkill, and I'm glad he doesn't, because he plays for the music first and foremost, accenting riffs in the appropriate places and never playing out of place. While some may call that safe, I call it smart. This is not the kind of album to just have blast beats running all the way through it, as it would just ruin the atmosphere.

My only gripe with the album is that the entirety is pretty much the same tempo throughout. I would have liked to hear some blisteringly fast sections, and some doomy, crunching slow sections. I guess they just didn't feel like it or didn't think it was appropriate for what they were trying to achieve.

Overall, a very solid effort. I respect and admire the organic songwriting and production. Acoustic sections are incredible, and both members give a stellar performance throughout the album. Definitely worth investing some time into.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Review by Ves on April 13, 2023.

Why Morkera's Entangled Excavations was my most replayed album in 2022?

The Croatian metal scene, much like other ex-Yugo countries, does not get enough love outside the Balkans. Not because it's bad, in fact there are some incredible bands hailing from Croatia. However, as it is a small country in Eastern (or Southeastern, Southern, whatever...) Europe, and has a correspondingly small scene which lives underground, one should not be surprised that metalheads across the globe have a hard time naming a single Croatian metal band.

I'd like to educate those people by introducing them to one of the youngest offerings of the Croatian death/black metal scene - Morkera. The band appeared in my YouTube feed in June, with the debut album posted by Black Metal Promotions. At that point, there was no mention of them anywhere, not even a Metal Archives page. To add to the mystique, the vinyl records from the first batch on their Bandcamp page sold out instantly, granted it was a limited run of 6 copies. After seeing the cover art and getting nowhere with internet searches, I just gave up and played the album. And oh man, am I glad I did.

The opening track, 'Muse', hits you relentlessly with a tremolo picked chord progression and a tight bombastic blast. As the wall of sound gives way to the main riff of the song, the drummer counts you in and you know you are about to get hurt some more. The cold, ruthless harshness of the vocals as they call on the muse to wake completes the circle, taking no breaks until the song ends in a distorted dirge. The dynamics at show in the first song are a constant theme throughout the album, with neckbreaking blast beats, melodic yet thick and heavy riffs, creative drum fills, and the vocals which sound as if a demon is calling you from the bottom of a well. After they've pummeled you with 16th and 32nd note mayhem on 'Muse', 'Submerged', and 'Deserted Denial', Morkera takes time to further build the album's atmosphere on 'Silent Gatherers', with dissonant riffage and tasty drum fills. The end of the song is marked by a dark synth and glitchy samples before sending you back into chaos with 'Conjuring Shades' and 'Overseer'. The penultimate track, 'Indigenes Formed In Tombs', is an instrumental with more arpeggiated dissonant chords, even more sorcery on the drum kit, and a thick bass tone holding down the sound space. It ends abruptly and unapologetically, leaving you feeling hollow and begging for more. Which you do get, but not in a way you might expect. The closer, 'Heaps Of Rubble', is a piano composition. However, this piano sounds like it is sitting at the bottom of a slow river carrying you downstream as you fade, and the chords and melodies played make the hairs on my arm stand every time I hear it. It justifies its name as there is nothing left for you here but a pile of rubble and a cloud of smoke.

The performances on the album are perfect but do not feel robotic. They have an organic feel to them, almost like the band is recording a rehearsal, despite the drummer being a session musician (he's on YouTube, look up piercewilliamsdrums) and the rest (probably) done by one guy in Croatia. The mixing is dense and filthy but with all instruments clearly intelligible, and gives you the sensation of choking on thick smoke and dust. One of the main highlights is the drumming, with lightning fast fills, double bass patterns, and precise yet chaotic blast beats. However, what ties it all together for me are the vocals which somehow manage to be some of the most demonic and harsh I've heard while simultaneously being clear in their lyrical delivery.

As I write this, there are already whispers of a follow-up to this stellar debut which set the bar quite high, while leaving themselves room to grow. I have no doubt the band will keep performances at or higher than the level displayed on Entangled Excavations, and am very much looking forward to hearing more of the dark and dissonant riffs, even more versatility on the songwriting front, as well as losing myself in the sophomore's atmosphere the way I did this one.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Review by JD on August 6, 2014.

Out of all of the many varieties of metal out there today, the only pure one of the whole lot is old school traditional metal. Somewhat simple and straight forward, yet fluidly explosive and powerful, this is what metal has evolved out of. Today, the bands that make this music put a huge bit of a spin on it, while keeping the old school vibes – the results are incredible and healthy for the scene as a whole.

Gang hails from France, and brings forth some old school metal with a little thrash to fill out their sound. Seriously reminding me like amazing bands like Saxon, Tokyo Blade (they do a cover of one of theirs) and even a bit of my favorite 80’s unknown Omen. It appears that Gang are truly being good students of the old school way of doing metal – but still they offer it up in their own unique sort of way.

I am in awe with every track on this CD, but a few stand out the most throughout this slab of pure metal. I love the power and intensity of both "Dying World" and "The King Became A God" because of the classic yet forward way they offered up the tunes. The other standout was the amazing cover of Tokyo Blade’s "If Heaven Is Hell". Gang gave an original sort of spin on the song, but still managed to keep the power and feel of the original.

Old school metal updated without taking the spirit away from it, this is what I fuckin’ live for. Gang might not have stumbled onto a new genre of metal to grace us with, but they have made crucial steps to becoming a band to be reckoned with. They have the abilities, talent and passion, now the metal world has to clue in to the traditional side of things that are new too.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Review by JD on August 6, 2014.

Out of all of the many varieties of metal out there today, the only pure one of the whole lot is old school traditional metal. Somewhat simple and straight forward, yet fluidly explosive and powerful, this is what metal has evolved out of. Today, the bands that make this music put a huge bit of a spin on it, while keeping the old school vibes – the results are incredible and healthy for the scene as a whole.

Gang hails from France, and brings forth some old school metal with a little thrash to fill out their sound. Seriously reminding me like amazing bands like Saxon, Tokyo Blade (they do a cover of one of theirs) and even a bit of my favorite 80’s unknown Omen. It appears that Gang are truly being good students of the old school way of doing metal – but still they offer it up in their own unique sort of way.

I am in awe with every track on this CD, but a few stand out the most throughout this slab of pure metal. I love the power and intensity of both "Dying World" and "The King Became A God" because of the classic yet forward way they offered up the tunes. The other standout was the amazing cover of Tokyo Blade’s "If Heaven Is Hell". Gang gave an original sort of spin on the song, but still managed to keep the power and feel of the original.

Old school metal updated without taking the spirit away from it, this is what I fuckin’ live for. Gang might not have stumbled onto a new genre of metal to grace us with, but they have made crucial steps to becoming a band to be reckoned with. They have the abilities, talent and passion, now the metal world has to clue in to the traditional side of things that are new too.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Review by JD on August 6, 2014.

Out of all of the many varieties of metal out there today, the only pure one of the whole lot is old school traditional metal. Somewhat simple and straight forward, yet fluidly explosive and powerful, this is what metal has evolved out of. Today, the bands that make this music put a huge bit of a spin on it, while keeping the old school vibes – the results are incredible and healthy for the scene as a whole.

Gang hails from France, and brings forth some old school metal with a little thrash to fill out their sound. Seriously reminding me like amazing bands like Saxon, Tokyo Blade (they do a cover of one of theirs) and even a bit of my favorite 80’s unknown Omen. It appears that Gang are truly being good students of the old school way of doing metal – but still they offer it up in their own unique sort of way.

I am in awe with every track on this CD, but a few stand out the most throughout this slab of pure metal. I love the power and intensity of both "Dying World" and "The King Became A God" because of the classic yet forward way they offered up the tunes. The other standout was the amazing cover of Tokyo Blade’s "If Heaven Is Hell". Gang gave an original sort of spin on the song, but still managed to keep the power and feel of the original.

Old school metal updated without taking the spirit away from it, this is what I fuckin’ live for. Gang might not have stumbled onto a new genre of metal to grace us with, but they have made crucial steps to becoming a band to be reckoned with. They have the abilities, talent and passion, now the metal world has to clue in to the traditional side of things that are new too.

Rating: 8 out of 10