Lollipop Magazine

Children of Bodom – Halo of Blood – Review

June 28, 2013

Hard-hitting, with a sense of melody and coarseness, this is the greatness we’ve come to expect from Children of Bodom.

Rotten Sound – Species At War – Review

June 26, 2013

First-rate grindcore from Finland. Raw meat slab designed to keep the wolves at bay between the band’s 2011 album Cursed and their next full-length.

Cancer Bats – Bat Sabbath – Bastards of Reality – Review

June 24, 2013

We don’t (nor have we ever) needed a cover of a Black Sabbath song because the boys from Birmingham made them all perfect the first time.

Whitechapel – The Somatic Defilement – Review

June 20, 2013

They’ve gone on to greater things since their 2007 debut, The Somnatic Defilement, but “Vicer Exciser” is a good example of their early sound.

Moss – Horrible Nights – Review

June 19, 2013

Southampton U.K.’s Moss – from the respected Rise Above record label – certainly earn the all caps of the “pure DOOM METAL” descriptor in their press release.

Soilwork – The Living Infinite – Review

June 8, 2013

A double album of melodic death metal may seem like a headscratcher at first, but Soilwork fired a warning shot with their last album, The Panic Broadcast.

Sodom – Epitome of Torture – Review

June 7, 2013

There’s a trend happening that finds aging German thrash bands reinvigorated, laser-focused on bashing out killer Thrash 101 courses for the young ‘uns.

Mindless Self Indulgence – How I Learned to Stop Giving A Shit and Love – Review

May 24, 2013

“Witness” kicks off with a resounding “Son Of A Bitch!” followed by a mix of heavy guitars and synth riffs mixed with enough power to make your guts rumble.

Cauldron – Tomorrow’s Lost – Review

May 3, 2013

Cauldron concocts a frothing stew of traditional metal on their third full-length. The band’s Angel Witch-inspired vibe doesn’t sound forced or retro.

In The Silence – A Fair Dream Gone Mad – Review

April 19, 2013

Wholeheartedly embracing their Katatonia worship. Epic, melancholy metal dire enough for a black night, but too melodic to be confused with the drearier doom.

Intronaut – Habitual Levitations – Review

April 5, 2013

This new nine-song album has some long tracks that require your attention to take in all of the sounds that they’re laying on you.

Call Of The Void – Dragged Down A Dead End Path – Review

March 29, 2013

Boulder, Colorado’s Call Of The Void play some brutal hardcore combined with grind and metal that will get your ass into a frenzy.

Kvelertak – Meir – Review

March 29, 2013

The Norwegians are a little more interested in pushing some different sounds, and even if some of them stand in stark contrast, they all work in context.

Hatebreed – The Divinity of Purpose – Review

March 15, 2013

The Divinity Of Purpose – their first since 2009’s self-titled album and their first on Razor & Tie – is one heavy, melodic, and crunchy album.

The Bronx – IV – Review

March 15, 2013

Modern life is a real drag according to the The Bronx’s lyrics, but you wouldn’t know it from the kick-ass, muscled boogie-punk that these LA punkers jerk out.

Soilwork – The Living Infinite – Review

March 8, 2013

These 20 tracks extend the sound of the previous album in a natural way. It’s a safe approach, but since the material is so strong, it works.

Secret Sphere – Portrait of a Dying Heart – Review

February 27, 2013

Before the phrase “Italian power metal” sends you screaming for the exits, know that Secret Sphere craft a pretty sweet Dream Theater-style instrumental opener.

Destinity – Resolve In Crimson – Review

February 26, 2013

Nothing here to blow your mind, but if you’re weary of the different directions that In Flames and Soilwork have gone in recent years, here ya go.

Sister Sin – From Now And Forever – Review

February 25, 2013

I gotta admit, I’m digging a lot of the Mick Mars-worshipping riffage on this album.

Ill Nino – Epidemia – Review

February 22, 2013

I like an opening act that can work a crowd just as much as the next guy who arrived too early, and this Jersey crew has the talent to accomplish that feat.

Angra – Best Reached Horizons – Review

February 21, 2013

The irony-free pomp and ponderous nature of most symphonic/prog/power metal usually gives me a limp noodle right quick, but I’ve gotta hand it to Angra.

This Or The Apocalypse – Dead Years – Review

February 18, 2013

“We like our rhythms complicated and our messages loud,” proclaims Lancaster, PA metalcore crew This Or The Apocalypse.

Baptists – Bushcraft – Review

February 15, 2013

This Vancouver crew sounds raw and aggressive on their debut, Bushcraft, careening and crashing through 11 songs.

Machine Head – Machine Fucking Head Live – Review

February 1, 2013

It’s surprising that it’s taken this long for a proper live album. Machine Fucking Head Live corrects that problem, though, and in grand fashion.

Grand Supreme Blood Court – Bow Down Before The Blood Court – Review

January 29, 2013

Bow Down Before The Blood Court is packed with crushing, brutal death metal, with little room to breathe, like on the bludgeoning “Piled Up For The Scavengers.”