Review by JD on October 19, 2015.

Black metal… even the sound of it evokes a mass of emotions- perhaps fear with respect. I grew up listening to the first strains of BM. Venom, Bathory and early Onslaught were the textbooks of what BM was for me. Now a whole lot of the newer bands are finally looking back at the godfathers of the genre, using that and end up making their music, their own.

Combining an uncanny knack of fusing some amazing yet brutal melodies, harsh blast beats with demon-esque vocals and grinding guitars to form a BM act worth listening to Witchclan pay tribute to the old school of BM. Witchclan also seem to transcend them as well, taking it all to that next worshiping level of ‘eviloution’.

As a one man outfit (Matt Bass), Witchclan is one of the best out there. I kept listening to the album over a few days, revelling in the heaviness and power generated. Going through each track, I became more and more impressed as I went deeper into the album. I found that Matt Bass was not only an exceptional songwriter and instrumentalist, but a venom spitting maniac on vocals and has given me one of my favorite black metal albums in the past few years.

Aside from a few mixing glitches in spots on the CD, Witchclan has offered up a BM album that not just the fans of the sub-genre can get into, but it seems it is accessible to may more of the metal family worldwide. A solid album has come from a very solid artist. It basically says it all, and I for one look forward to what might be next.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Review by JD on December 5, 2012.

Few people deserve to have any right to be called legendary, or simply put a Legend in todays metal. A few that can be called just that: Ozzy, Tommy Iommi, Judas Priest, Randy Rhodes. Death Metal Godfather from the infamous Death, Chuck Schuldiner is one of those who not only should be called that, to some he is legendary already - I've included him already in that category.

Dying long before he needed to (Pneumonia attributed to Cancer Treatment Dec. 13/02), Chuck Schuldiner has etched his mark on metal in large sprawling scribe. He did not actually invent the whole Death Metal genre but he re-energized and retool it into the drooling beast that it is today. With the knack for writing tempestuously heavy riffs that are full of biting and sharpened shards of pure power, he also really understood melody and used it in every note he played.

Every song on this two disk set comes at you with this barbarically raw, full of aggressiveness and yet spotlights the power. Chuck has left these recordings that way... and it is so clear that this was the right thing to do. With twenty nine tracks to infuse the soul with metal, it feels like its Christmas, your birthday, the best sex that you have ever had and winning the Lotto rolled into one.

I have heard that his family was not wanting to have these songs released and i respect that so much - but I have to say that these recordings are so important, that I am so glad that they have been released. I hope it was with the families blessings, but I am still glad we have them to remind us how amazing this man was. Rest in Peace, Mr Schuldiner... you earned a spot with Rock And Roll royalty.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 10
Atmosphere: 10
Production: 10 (rawness makes me think 12)
Originality: 10
Overall: 10

Rating: 10 out of 10