Fun facts about Sam and her band Nocteris! When I attended the show featuring 4 different black metal bands at The High Water Mark in Portland, Oregon, on April 3, I did a short impromptu video interview with Sam, lead vocalist / bassist of Portland-based symphonic black metal band Nocteris. We are just hanging outside […]
An epic night of bombastic heavy symphonic metal! On my recent European trip, I scheduled a couple stops outside my main destination of Switzerland to take the opportunity to see some bands that seem unlikely for me to see in the US. I am thankful for my local scene in Seattle and the international bands
Fantastic symphonic metal debut from Sweden with hard rock sensibility! February was a good month for symphonic metal, with releases from both Flowerleaf and Epinikion impressive, the former becoming a personal obsession, even moreso after experiencing them live in mid March, and the latter an album I just get lost in. The debut full length
Shatterheart – Infernal Symphony – Album Review Read More »
Amazing theatrical and epic symphonic metal from The Netherlands! Dutch symphonic metal band Epinikion is a newer band on the scene, forming in 2020 and releasing their debut album, “Inquisition,” in 2022. The band started as the vision of two people, keyboardist Renate de Boer and guitarist Robert Tangerman, and the debut album was written
Epinikion – The Force of Nature – Album Review Read More »
Five albums from January 2026 that deserve your listening attention! I am a little late posting this (something about launching my website and getting things ramped up), but here are my top 5 releases from January 2026. The reality is, January kicked off the year in splendid fashion. I reviewed 19 albums released during the
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A wide variety of extreme metal bands making up a fantastic show! The Glacial Ascension Tour featured 5 bands on a short tour up the West Coast, culminating in an appearance at Day 3 of Glacial Mutilation Fest in Vancouver, BC, Canada. The penultimate stop was at Substation in Seattle, WA, on Friday, February 20,
Progressive metal from Hungary incorporating symphonic, gothic, and death metal notes with a heavy dose of cinematic flair! I stumbled upon Hungary’s Meteora back in November via an Instagram ad letting me know about their at the time recently released EP, “Broken Mind.” I liked the clip I heard, and after diving in for a
Meteora – Darkest Light – Album Review Read More »
HEAVY modern symphonic metal with killer melodies and fabulous song writing! I didn’t know who Flowerleaf was until late last year when they released a single called “Silksong” that came to my attention via an Instagram ad. If you are a video game aficionado or just happen to be familiar with the Hollow Knight series,
FlowerLeaf / Dreamerie – Album Review Read More »
Gothic and theatrical symphonic metal that rewards the discerning listener Austrian gothic symphonic metal band Edenbridge has been around for quite some time, releasing their 12th full length in their 25+ year career in mid-January, entitled “Set the Dark on Fire.” Founded by guitarist and composer Arne “Lanvall” Stockhammer and long-standing vocalist Sabine Edelsbacher, the
Edenbridge / Set the Dark on Fire – Album Review Read More »
Melodic and catchy symphonic metal with pop and hard rock sensibility! I felt like 2025 delivered a number of great symphonic metal releases, and 2026 appears to be promising with quite a few on the horizon already. Germany’s Beyond the Black has the honor of kicking off this trend with their 6th full length album,
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