Review by Alex on April 30, 2019.

“No one left, no one left to see this doomsday prophecy”. Fuck yes!!, The very first time I discovered Altar of Oblivion by means of sheer luck, I could not quit spinning Salvation; such a masterpiece of on EP, and still that's not saying nearly enough about the scope of its musical accomplishments. After being blown away by just how authoritatively Salvation took the genre with its direct unhindered tone of ominous fore-telling, I had to have more. Got my hands on a copy of Sinews of Anguish and I was officially addicted. Now in 2019 they return to forecast more prophecies of doom and gloom. 

What was it about the early releases that caught my attention and enlisted me a part of the Altar of Oblivion legion? The dreary, gloomy, pessimistic yet rebelling tone of the bands work, and specifically front man Mik Mentor's voice. His vocal delivery always sounded like a wise haruspex from beyond, forecasting inevitable dread and despair. It was always the highlight for me on the previous albums alongside the impressive guitars and drum compositions; and I’m more than pleased to say that the ominous sound of his vocals makes a triumphant return on The Seven Spirits. Matched with instrumentation that collectively structures the ideal scenery to go along with the apocalyptic lyrics, Altar of Oblivion have once again demonstrated why they are worthy of being regarded as a modern epic doom metal maelstrom. All aspects that were loved on previous releases return with fist pumping and sword wielding glamour. Guitar solos that will spoil the ear canals of any listener, drumming that hits like a numb handed heavyweight boxer, and a vocal performance that calls for a trophy and a cape to be placed over the capable back of front man Mik Mentor. 

How’s the music? The same gold standard is applied to the musicianship featured on The Seven Spirits ensuring the listener will get a high level of addicting hooks, guitar solos, drumming and of course, vocals. All that you have come to acquaint Altar of Oblivion with and expect from, is proudly displayed in prime form. It's as if listening to a part two of Sinews of Anguish with a step up in the production value. It's evident as Mik’s voice and in particular the guitars come to front from the inception of the first song. His vocal range seems to have 1+ everything in the past. Tracks like “No One Left”, “Solemn Messiah” and “Gathering at the Wake” seem to have taken much advantage of this enriched production by highlighting vintage aspects of the unit. Those soaring vocals of Mik, matched with the catchy guitar leads and groovy punchy drumming, cooperatively makes for a sensational record, further carrying the name of Altar of Oblivion through the golden halls of epic heavy doom metal. 

Mik’s vocals have that ominous admonishing tone that really sets the band apart from others in the genre. And the songs are constructed in such diverse patterns that apprehend the essence of epic doom metal, still he is able to adjust his vocal highs and lows when executing his archetypal technique as heard on “Seven Spirits” and the likes of. There are no weak songs on The Seven Spirits, as one would guess by now, it was enough of a challenge searching for the standout track when they all perform exceedingly well. Not a moment of needless filler, the work on here is purposeful; supporters of the genre and band will never be greeted by any bromidic moments. The songs translate emotions at high accuracy, Altar of Oblivion has never failed at this and here that trait is put on display and kept for the entire journey leading to the doomsday. 

These Denmark based epic heavy doom metal lads are without a doubt sharing the spotlight with some of the best the genre has to offer, and with the release of The Seven Spirits their stronghold and presence in the genre is profusely magnified. Don't be surprised if The Seven Spirits appears on multiple "album of the year" list with a high ranking. Altar of Oblivion have outdone themselves once again.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Review by Alex on January 23, 2020.

Fairly young band Diabology look to get their feet muddy with their debut full-length album, "Nobody Believes Me". A fusion of black/thrash/punk/groove/viking and a bit of traditional heavy metal is the formula the youngsters have chosen in mending the material together. Having the will to not repeat what other bands are doing (especially when labeled as a blackened thrash) is great by mixing the genres, but it's not done in the most concise way. While the songs themselves may be interesting the overall album seems like a compilation rather than a well woven adhesive set of attributes; not that the expectations were relatively high given the members are inexperienced, but the music needed some sense of cohesion. As far as playing, they make good of their instruments and one could only see better things to come from them with the progression of time. The punk influence could be heard in the vocals on almost all tracks but have a blackened tone as well, this along with the riffing and crusty production gives the music a rag-doll feeling which I think goes well with the various metal styles used.

Songs here are very owning of their identity; all the tunes sound different and have their individual moments intact despite the band being inexperienced. Following opener 'The Voices (Nobody Believes Me)' you'd have thought of Diabology as a punk metal act, but with each new entry the songs mutate into other forms of metal. You get 'Deicide' taking on a thrash/groove approach, then, out of nowhere, 'Defiling Innocents' goes full blown black heavy metal with tremolo riffing being at the forefront of the tunes backed by a very trad-metal guitar solo then it's back to thrash metal with a bit of hardcore influence on 'Ember to Ash'. This is the slight trouble of the music; it's enjoyable as singles but in-concise as a unit. Nevertheless, there are songs on here for you to enjoy headbanging to given the material is not stapled down to any one style in particular, it really caters to a large audience. I found the better songs were placed down the order with 'Seas of Eternity', 'Lost Viking', 'Lazarus Falling' and 'Silent' being the best (personally) on "Nobody Believes Me" for the fact the musicianship is much more convincing and a bit more coherent than those featured on the first half. 

The production on "Nobody Believes Me" helps out the music, it has a dirty and rugged texture that when applied to the punky black thrashing adds an organic flavor to an already down-to-earth recording. To sustain the lengthy run time this almost awkward sort of diversity comes as a sufficient tool, keeping the listener literally guessing which route the band will take next. The guitaring is good, and most songs in being so diverse from each other have credible riffs to support the styles. As mentioned before 'Lazarus Falling', 'Lost Viking' etc., are some of the highlights, credit of fairly good riffing; even on the slower songs such as 'Diabology', there's no denying the guitaring is solid, through breakdowns and all. In conclusion, overall the material has room for improvement but for what's offered appears to be sincere and telling of a band that could be more successful.

Rating: 7 out of 10