Scythian - To Those Who Stand Against Us

...because they're too damn good. Seriously 2009 was the best year for music in...ever. One of the many albums from 2009 that I never got around to listening to was Scythian's To Those Who Stand Against Us, and holy fuck this album slays.

Scythian's To Those Who Stand Against Us sounds like the best elements of Aura Noir and Mithras combined to create a torrenting hail of death/black/thrash destruction. The latter's elements are what make this record really stand out - you've got all the epic, effects-driven sounds of Mithras' death metal in a big, long, blackened package. If the innuendo puts you off, you clearly won't like the album since that's pretty much exactly what it sounds like.

No for real, this album is ballin'. "Astral Assassins" really kicks things into high gear and Scythian doesn't relent from there to the end of the album. Even the more mid-paced (if you'd go that far) tracks like "Open Steppe" and "Shattered Idols"  are filled with killer riffs and memorable fills. The solos are often interesting and filled with a few effects seldomly used by other artists.

I find this album relatively tough to write about. I've even had this review saved for the past two months of inactivity (yeah you heard me), but I couldn't think of a way to really continue it and now I know why. This album is just superbly written. There isn't much more to say about it. A lot of the thrashier riffs will get stuck in your head, and the heavier stuff will make you wish Morbid Angel's latest wasn't a steaming pile of shit. Songs like "Ares Guide My Blade" and "Spires To Ashes" as well as the aforementioned "Astral Assassins" will have you rocking out like any metal fan worthy of his own pitiful existence.

8.75 out of 10

Tracklisting:

1.	Pray to War
2.	Astral Assassins
3.	Shattered Idols
4.	Ares Guide My Blade
5.	Spires to Ashes
6.	Open Steppe
7.	Suffering to the Conquered
8.	Kurgan Funeral Chant

Revocation - Chaos Of Forms

A month after I said I'd be back posting, I'm finally back posting. Typical me (?) I guess. Anyway I've listened to a fuckton of music since the last time I posted, and I'm going to inform you of all the mystical wonders that passed between my two ears. And I'm going to do that with a bunch of updates - perhaps even several per day. I know that may seem like a lot of opinion to burden your underdeveloped brain with, but that's just the way things are going to be. AND YOU WILL LIKE IT.

First I'll start with something I enjoyed: Revocation's newest technical death/thrash monstrosity, Chaos Of Forms.

Take all the nuances of technical death metal, combine it with classic forward-moving thrash songwriting and even a bit of crust punk. Mix the fuck out of it, and what do you get? Revocation. Despite being relatively new to the scene, this band has a future unlike so many of their more dull comrades.

Chaos Of Forms is a continuation of Revocation's already fantastic track record. From the demo tracks "Cradle Robber" and "No Funeral" it's pretty obvious that this would be the case, but the full album has a few tricks up it's sleeve, the majority of which pop up in the middle of the virtuosic solos. "Harlot" features a funky solo filled with shifting effects and the following track's solo "Dissolution Ritual" is straight up progressive noodling. "Dethroned" is a standout track on the album in that it sounds more akin to something like Rise And Fall than traditional Revocation. It's a very punk-ish track filled with tritones and perfect fifths, and that makes it fucking awesome.

The whole album is memorable really. There's not a track that you won't have stuck in your head at some point. Actually scratch that. You won't have yourself humming along to "Conjuring The Cataclysm." I don't know why they included that track. It sounds like Revocation attempting black metal and mixing it with Dream Theater. For those of you with no reading comprehension, that means they mixed two things that should NEVER EVER mix. Otherwise chalk up another quality release for 2011.

8.5 out of 10

Tracklisting:

1. Cretin
2. Cradle Robber
3. Harlot
4. Dissolution Ritua
5. Conjuring the Cataclysm
6. No Funeral
7. Fractal Entity
8. Chaos of Form
9. The Watchers
10. Beloved Horrifier
11. Dethroned
12. Reprogrammed

It's not mediafire? Deal with it nerd.