Review by Felix on August 20, 2023.

Mika Luttinen has been involved in a really great album, Impaled Nazarene’s “Ugra Karma”. But this does not mean that he has the license to produce bullshit. Unfortunately this is exactly what he did when it came to Diabolos Rising. Together with a veteran of the Greek scene, he wanted to create an extremely ugly cocktail of ritualistic, industrial aggro sounds. Don’t expect typical riffs, but quite annoying streams of keyboard lines, sometimes weird, sometimes harsh, mostly just expressionless. With a lot of good will, perhaps it is possible to say that the slightly oriental yet synthetic “Vinnum Sabbati” has at least a certain charm, but it is also not free from idiotic sequences (for example the percussion part which is accompanied by incomprehensible muttering while any form of melody is conspicuous by its absence).

But generally speaking, the album just delivers the computerized opposite of art. Experienced listeners of extreme metal laugh their heads off at the oh so nasty computer drum salvos with which the two jokers want to make an impression. Anyway, I walk through the boring landscapes of industrial noise, Luttinen plays the vocal God with a commanding yet completely irrelevant voice. Even the most intensive track “Sathanas Lead Us Through” (above all, please lead me through this so-called work of art unscathed) gives me more or less nothing, because it fails to trigger any emotions. The second “highlight” of “666” is “Sorcery – Scientia Maxima”. It’s melody line at the beginning is among the most ridiculous ever recorded and every beginner would be ashamed of himself for it, but as the song progresses, it reveals some harmonies that could work in the hands of competent musicians, for example on one of the late Master’s Hammer albums.

M-A lists the title track as “instrumental”, but - official complaint! - that’s a lie, because there are six minutes without any instruments and without any vocals. Just silence – haha, this is the best song here, so to say. Too bad that the closer wakes me up again with its stupid keyboard lines. Maybe its first half wants to bring the lousy album to a mild end, but it is just superfluous. And this is exactly the term that characterizes this stinker, this malicious caricature of a good music release. Bulldozer also had their electro period, but at least they knew they could not be taken seriously. Diabolos Rising probably actually thought their acoustic trash is really relevant. Mistake! If “penis rising” in front of a beautiful girl that loves you is the best thing you can experience, Diabolos Rising is more or less the exact opposite of that. Don’t know whether Luttinen shares my point of view.

Rating: 1.5 out of 10

Review by Jeger on November 8, 2024.

Sweden's Sarcator (a combination of Sarcófago and Kreator) - a youthful, high-energy extreme metal project that doesn't necessarily fit into any concrete genre classification. For the sake of reviewing, we'll call it blackened thrash. With band members ranging in age from 19 - 25, and having already signed with international powerhouse record label, Century Media Records, these guys are truly hitting the ground running. To be signed to a major label at such a young age? Envy-inducing, to say the least. Sarcator spent a few years underground before their transition into the mainstream and have released two, soon to be three full-length studio LPs. On January 17, 2025, Sarcator will unleash Swarming Angels & Flies via the above-mentioned Century Media. 

True thrash metal is an art form beholden to tradition. What bands like Megadeth and even Kreator have become is laughable; abominations! No balls and all-flash. Their albums are gaudy and exhaustive, sanitized and shallow. I understand that artists get to a point where they cringe at the idea of reversion, but let’s not forget about a little something called artistic integrity, which waved bye-bye to these dudes a long time ago. Give me Chile’s Mayhemic or Germany’s Eradicator! Thrash metal as it was meant to be: gritty, balls-to-the-wall, and oozing unadulterated attitude. Sarcator evidently gets it, and Swarming Angels & Flies delivers the true thrash goods, but with a charred blackened edge along with the same maniacal energy that only the aforementioned Sarcófago were capable of. 

Unpredictable as an untreated terminal disease and as evil as sin, Swarming Angels & Flies terrifies, shocks, and awes. Unfathomable talent for such a young band of artists and their youthful enthusiasm radiates through every cut on the record; those precious few years when you just feel invincible and completely untouched by the blight of existence. Raunchy punk-inspired riffs and swirling leads during the intro to the opener, 'Burning Choir', quickly mutate into eviscerating progressions: mach five guitar parts, bludgeoning blasts, and lunatic vocals - obvious prodigies and adept beyond their years - not your tank-top, high-top, mullet thrash metal, but something all too sinister. Music for Molotov cocktails, random acts of vandalism, and unholy desecrations. 'Comet Of End Times', like if Carcass wrote a thrash song, like Toxic Holocaust on steroids! Break out the Preparation H because there is no musical expense spared on that ass… An unleashing of every sonic weapon in this band’s cache, and it stays that way throughout most of the album. 

The first outlier comes by way of 'Where The Void Begins' - a mid-tempo banger and a welcomed change of pace as acoustics underlain by intrepid bass lines fuel riff upon juicy riff. A sense of artistic maturity that has been attained early; a testament to Sarcator’s ability for brilliant, accessible songwriting. There’s a sense of urgency to each track: all that young, belligerent, and full of cum energy that we geezers covet. Not even cocaine or meth can produce this kind of mania! 

Outlier number two comes in the form of 'Closure'. Psychedelia redolent to Nachtmystium and the same twangy Western vibe, not thrash at all, but a unique little instrumental jam session where Sarcator let loose and have a little fun as they explore wayward influences ranging from some Hammett-worshipping Wah to some Taake-ish complexity in melody. All over the place but in a good way. 

Swarming Angels & Flies is as entertaining as X-men, as complex as 12 Monkeys, and as intense as Mad Max - a comprehensive gem of a record. These guys deserve every bit of the limelight they’ve had cast upon them thus far. The talent speaks for itself. Extreme metal to trigger beer-drenched circle pits and caveman mosh, but also awe-inspiring moments of pondering the end-of-days. The cross-genre metal of epic proportions! Shit, I feel like I just got run over by a Mack Truck… You gonna dig this one, guaranteed. 

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Review by Jeger on November 8, 2024.

Sweden's Sarcator (a combination of Sarcófago and Kreator) - a youthful, high-energy extreme metal project that doesn't necessarily fit into any concrete genre classification. For the sake of reviewing, we'll call it blackened thrash. With band members ranging in age from 19 - 25, and having already signed with international powerhouse record label, Century Media Records, these guys are truly hitting the ground running. To be signed to a major label at such a young age? Envy-inducing, to say the least. Sarcator spent a few years underground before their transition into the mainstream and have released two, soon to be three full-length studio LPs. On January 17, 2025, Sarcator will unleash Swarming Angels & Flies via the above-mentioned Century Media. 

True thrash metal is an art form beholden to tradition. What bands like Megadeth and even Kreator have become is laughable; abominations! No balls and all-flash. Their albums are gaudy and exhaustive, sanitized and shallow. I understand that artists get to a point where they cringe at the idea of reversion, but let’s not forget about a little something called artistic integrity, which waved bye-bye to these dudes a long time ago. Give me Chile’s Mayhemic or Germany’s Eradicator! Thrash metal as it was meant to be: gritty, balls-to-the-wall, and oozing unadulterated attitude. Sarcator evidently gets it, and Swarming Angels & Flies delivers the true thrash goods, but with a charred blackened edge along with the same maniacal energy that only the aforementioned Sarcófago were capable of. 

Unpredictable as an untreated terminal disease and as evil as sin, Swarming Angels & Flies terrifies, shocks, and awes. Unfathomable talent for such a young band of artists and their youthful enthusiasm radiates through every cut on the record; those precious few years when you just feel invincible and completely untouched by the blight of existence. Raunchy punk-inspired riffs and swirling leads during the intro to the opener, 'Burning Choir', quickly mutate into eviscerating progressions: mach five guitar parts, bludgeoning blasts, and lunatic vocals - obvious prodigies and adept beyond their years - not your tank-top, high-top, mullet thrash metal, but something all too sinister. Music for Molotov cocktails, random acts of vandalism, and unholy desecrations. 'Comet Of End Times', like if Carcass wrote a thrash song, like Toxic Holocaust on steroids! Break out the Preparation H because there is no musical expense spared on that ass… An unleashing of every sonic weapon in this band’s cache, and it stays that way throughout most of the album. 

The first outlier comes by way of 'Where The Void Begins' - a mid-tempo banger and a welcomed change of pace as acoustics underlain by intrepid bass lines fuel riff upon juicy riff. A sense of artistic maturity that has been attained early; a testament to Sarcator’s ability for brilliant, accessible songwriting. There’s a sense of urgency to each track: all that young, belligerent, and full of cum energy that we geezers covet. Not even cocaine or meth can produce this kind of mania! 

Outlier number two comes in the form of 'Closure'. Psychedelia redolent to Nachtmystium and the same twangy Western vibe, not thrash at all, but a unique little instrumental jam session where Sarcator let loose and have a little fun as they explore wayward influences ranging from some Hammett-worshipping Wah to some Taake-ish complexity in melody. All over the place but in a good way. 

Swarming Angels & Flies is as entertaining as X-men, as complex as 12 Monkeys, and as intense as Mad Max - a comprehensive gem of a record. These guys deserve every bit of the limelight they’ve had cast upon them thus far. The talent speaks for itself. Extreme metal to trigger beer-drenched circle pits and caveman mosh, but also awe-inspiring moments of pondering the end-of-days. The cross-genre metal of epic proportions! Shit, I feel like I just got run over by a Mack Truck… You gonna dig this one, guaranteed. 

Rating: 8.5 out of 10