Portal - Vexovoid (2013)

Portal have been among the most peculiar black/death metal bands since their incarnation in 1998. They haven't been so busy writing material all time, putting out only three full-lengths since, and yet they've maintained their position as one of the most important bands of the last decade. Their minimal use of eight-string guitars might remind one of Meshuggah, while their approach is precisely the opposite. Portal are clearly musical primitivists, and unlike Meshuggah, do not indulge in technical sides of things, whether minimal or not. Likewise, their brand of horror remains not a sci-fi one, but one coming straight from the depth of the Lovecrafian universe. To further intensify their end, they also benefit from a semi-lo-fi production sound that is nowhere as near to the clear-cut, contemporary death metal consensus sound; blending a great deal of noise and electric murk a casual listener might not even be able to grasp the majority of the riffs in the first listen. I can say, however, that "Vexovoid" could be named as their most hi-fi effort to date, since its production is way more clearer than any of their previous releases, but nevertheless it remains, still, way off the consensus. The only disappointing point about the record is that it's a short ride, running around 35 minutes; that is considering it's their first record in four years.

Black Breath - Sentenced To Life (2012)

When it comes to metal and punk, the 80's glares like the sun itself. The amount of sonic wickedness and all the scenic frenzy that was around, those days, was nearly out of control. Lately, a lot of bands have attempted to hash over the spirit of that time, and one of the most recent and notable ones are Black Breath. Since their debut EP in 2008, "Razor To Oblivion", Black Breath have been this chapel for those sharing interests in everything old-school -- may it be crossover thrash, death n' roll, or just some d-beat. "Sentenced To Life" is, if nothing else, 33 minutes of skull-splitting metal mania.

Zombie Inc. - A Dreadful Decease (2012)

Never being interested in the subject, Ossorio's "Blind Dead" series has been my most zombie-related film favorite. Here it is now, Zombie Inc., a band fulfilled with zombie-themed lyrics and imagery. Setting aside all things zombie about Zombie Inc., musically and vocally, they offer an old-school death metal sound, in reminiscent of Entombed, Obituary, and early Brutal Truth. And yes, this is truly old-school, and that means not the Vanhelgd type.

Dragged Into Sunlight - Hatred For Mankind (2009)

Anti-everything in their own words, Dragged Into Sunlight play what could be a point where sludge metal, crust punk, and blackened death metal all sound the same. Like a bastard child of Hellhammer, Asphyx, Leviathan, His Hero Is Gone, and Noothgrush; they forge sheer sonic atrocities -- songs imploding enough to tear down the speakers if necessary. Their only full-length, released in 2009 -- "Hatred For Mankind" --  is a collection of six unholy psalms, running over fifty minutes. It's a record just as desperate and desolate as Sadistic Intent, early Rwake, and Carnivore; with samples implanted in between the tracks, and an overall lo-fi mix. Though ruthless as they might be, the DIS also subsume to their sound, soundscapes; what their colleges in Bongripper also incorporate, but with the immutable, fiendish vocals on top, they rarely stop beating the shit out of the listener. Not many bands go where DIS are headed to, and so they're in league of their own. A league from Hell itself, that is.

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