The phrase “NYC-based black metal” might conjure images in your mind of a hipster-heavy, irony-fueled disaster, but luckily for us, Black Anvil is for real.
Turisas, Korpiklaani, TYR, Finntroll, Leaves Eyes, and others are universally nice, even as Bill Zebub drags the questioning into his predictable banality.
In the Kowalskis’ Laurie Anderson sound-alike sweepstakes, Thee Sgt. Major III singer Leslie Beattie takes the cake. Blondie, fun, Ramones, ’60s girl groups.
Content to present a string of clear-the-room quests, a bizarrely complicated weapon-leveling system, and slavish adherence to the worst aspects of the genre.
Far from the extreme sounds of Hypocrisy’s Peter Tägtgren’s day-to-day, Pain is a toweringly poppy and melody-filled slice of polished industrial rock.
Also-rans from the light gun’s mid-’90’s heyday. They’re faithful recreations of arcade games known more for unwieldy plastic cannons than for their gameplay.
Not a bucket list RPG like a Final Fantasy or Zelda, but it doesn’t carry the rigid expectations or sequel fatigue, so it’s free to carve its own unique path.
The Changing of the Guard is the weakest effort during the last nine years. But even a less-than average Starflyer 59 record is bestowed with highlights.