Category Archives: Reviews M – Z

My Silent Wake – There Was Death (2018) – Review

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Once desolation and doom in metal takes your fancy, you probably need to look no further than My Silent Wake. Former works like Damnatio Memoriae were already right up there with the likes of My Dying Bride and Paradise Lost. Or with a dramatically less meaty version of outfits like Loathfinder.

Yet, the band’s gothically tainted, painfully bleak, and barebone approach to Doom Death Metal always allowed them to carve out their very own niche in this genre.

Then again – never shy of experiments – Ian Arkley launched himself into Invitiation to Imperfection in 2017. A … [...] Click to raid more!

Mighty Oaks – Howl (2014) – Review

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Sometimes the process of reckoning and reasoning @ RockmusicRaider is unfathomable. No rhyme nor reason seems to be apparent when it comes to record selection for the ever-important review list. The one that decides – sometimes on a whim – who’s gonna get on the blog. 

Then we sometimes enigmatically decide to cover older records first, before the new ones get a chance. Or we go for very old ones to boot. For instance, a Scorpions review just saw the light of day lately for instance. Because stubborn RMR does not listen to pop lore pundits, telling us to only … [...] Click to raid more!

Shadygrove – In The Heart Of Scarlet Wood (2018) – Review

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I had a complaint.

It all centered around the lack of folk on the RockmusicRaider blog. A sentiment that the RMR deck crew heartily supported by the way. The zine got a pretty tough metallic shine over the last months – growls, corpse paint, and all. And this is just dandy of course, no contest. But our credo also leans towards the more folksy aspects of the music multiverse. 

So, what better surprise than this alluring blurb from Italy that just wafted over the alps. ‘Tis exactly that medicine that we need to soothe our metal-hot nerves with. Complete with a … [...] Click to raid more!

Ostura – The Room (2018) – Review

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I am amazed. These guys managed to get the attention of Arjen Lucassen (Ayreon, Guilt Machine, Stream of Passion, The Gentle Storm), plus secured the services of a felt gazillion of additional guest performers from 12 countries.

As if this weren’t enough, they got Jens Bogren of Fascination Street Studios to do the mixing and mastering piece. Then the band forged ahead and landed us with 74 minutes of progressive goodness on 12 tracks.

Wow!

And this raised a major concern right from the beginning. Do we have another case of extensive, badly managed complexity that raises … [...] Click to raid more!