Ain Sof Aur - Theos-Vel-Samael

Labels: I, Voidhanger Records

Formats: CD/Digital

Release Date: 03 Apr 2026

Tracklist:

1. I

2. II

3. III

It's been a long time since I've featured a release from Italian label I, Voidhanger Records. I was planning to stick to my schedule but the call for something more avant-garde was too great. That's where Brazilian black metal band Ain Sof Aur drew my attention.

It's well worth noting that Ain Sof Aur have been a band since 2006. They released three demos, two full-lengths and a split during nine very productive years before a gap of eight years leading to this release (Disclaimer: all the above information comes courtesy of Metal Archives and therefore may not be fully accurate).

I love experimental, avant-garde metal now more so than ever. Despite the fact that it’s taking pride of place in my personal record collection; it’s not something that my fellow record-loving (local) friends can stomach. Their loss! I guess that’s why I chose to go off-piste this evening with the latest album from Brazilian black metal band Ain Sof Aur. Containing three songs and starting with ‘I’, you’re greeted with a sound that’s both melodic but also incredibly frenetic, and metallic in places. This opening song sits just shy of twenty-one minutes in length and as such, it takes a while to grow. Instrumental metallic elements and subtle doom-like passages grow in prominence before the band’s experimental black metal reveals itself fully.

I can completely see why I, Voidhanger Records took Ain Sof Aur under their wing, even at this early point. After doing some early reading about the album, I was expecting this opener to be a lot more instrumental/drone-like in delivery, but it’s so far from that. It’s a fully encompassing black metal song that rages when it needs to, slows down in tempo where appropriate and uses beautiful panic-chords/riffs as if they were free. I can’t put my finger on any single comparison and I guess that’s a good thing overall.

I decided to write this review in two sittings, which I now realise was a stupid idea because the break in between has halted my momentum. I’ll learn one of these days. ‘II’ thankfully has momentum of its own, being more condensed and shorter than the opener on Theos-Vel-Samael. There’s still a lot of doom influences here but it seems to walk a more avant-garde path too, relying greatly on the band’s instrumental creativity as the vocals flow in and out. Pleasingly to my ears, the further the song progresses, the more avant-garde sounding it becomes. Ain Sof Aur do a great a job though of appealing to all manner of extreme metal listeners, so don’t be worried about my attempts to describe their music.

Even before ‘II’ has had time to finish and sink in, closer ‘III’ comes at you with insane energy. The furious combination of both percussion and guitars lead to the most disgusting black/death metal song to come out of Brazil since I can remember. I don’t think even music by the most well-known Brazilian extreme metal greats can compare (but feel free to shoot me down here!). Honestly, this album is such a joy to listen to. It’s delivered with great integrity and artistry. Ain Sof Aur themselves add to the excitement that’s growing around the Central/South American extreme music community of late.

Theos-Vel-Samael is due for official release just two days now but pre-listening and ordering can be made via I, Voidhanger Records below:-

Alternatively, physical copies will be available to purchase soon from I, Voidhanger Records through their web stores here:-

EU - http://metalodyssey.8merch.com/

USA - http://metalodyssey.8merch.us/

Ain Sof Aur - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100076227245589

I, Voidhanger Records - https://www.facebook.com/i.voidhanger.records

Hegeroth - Soaked In Rot

Labels: Self-Released

Formats: CD/Digital

Release Date: 25 Mar 2026

Tracklist:

1. You May Call Me a Witch

2. The Act of Lust

3. Błogosławieni Ślepi

4. The Nails

5. Hypocrisy Demands Blood

6. Święte Szlachtowanie

7. The Degrees

8. The Swing

9. Gdybym Istniał 

I've been thinking about how to start this review for most of the day. One country I haven't featured a lot of here is Poland but that changes now, thanks to Solid Rock PR, who're doing their utmost to champion the country's ever growing metal community. I recently received a promo package that featured the newest album from Polish black metal duo Hegeroth. Not only did I receive a CD copy of their 2026 full-length Soaked In Rot, but they were kind enough to throw in some stickers, a plectrum and a handwritten note!

Hegeroth formed in 2010 and released their first and only demo in 2012. Since then they have released five full-length albums, with Soaked In Rot (their sixth) due for official release this coming Wednesday. Thank you to Bene and Chors for this opportunity.

Even though the days are getting lighter and longer, I’ve been looking for an excuse to delve into more black metal (not that I should really need one!). Cue Polish melodic black metallers Hegeroth and their newest album. Starting with ‘You May Call Me a Witch’, they’re out to show that Polish black metal is about more than just Behemoth et al. As a duo, they do stay true to their country’s version of black metal, which is equal part Slavic and Hellenic with some war metal tendencies thrown in too. After the somewhat expensive opener, ‘The Act of Lust’ goes for more immediacy with raging percussion and guitar work, as well as the snarling vocals. This is excellent so far! A lot of attention has gone into it and it shows. I just hope my neighbours think so too!

The other thing I like about this album is that Hegeroth don’t just write their vocals in English. ‘Błogosławieni Ślepi’ is their first Polish language song here and it only makes their black metal sound even more fearsome. That fearsome sound is made in part due to the raw, organic recording. There’s something quite haunting and unnerving about the intro to ‘The Nails’ and it sets the scene perfectly, as Hegeroth deliver another frenetic blackened hymn. That being said though, there’s a great deal of control rhythmically. I don’t know if the percussion being performed is the work of a session drummer or a drum machine, which I suppose is a good thing as it blends well with the rest of the music.

The mid-point of the album is taken up by ‘Hypocrisy Demands Blood’, which is an utterly disgusting slab of black metal that’s joined by what sounds like slam/death metal in places. I’m probably hearing it wrong but I love it all the same. By now it’s obvious that Hegeroth are at their most brutal when they’re performing in their mother tongue, as is demonstrated by ‘Święte Szlachtowanie’, which is the shortest song on the album. The brutality is rained in slightly by their melody though.

It’s always impressive to me that simple tempo changes can make an album sound completely different from one minute to the next, as is the case with ‘The Degrees’. Initially it sounds like a doom/death song before it shifts back into more familiar black metal territory. The melodic elements are great here, adding extra depth to the music. Penultimate song ‘The Swing’ is actually the album’s longest, so don’t be expecting anything too swinging! It has elements of progression and noise alongside the extremity that makes this album such an enjoyable listen.

‘Gdybym Istniał’ closes the album in a suitably unnerving manner, as the dramatic intro builds in volume and melody, leading to a gloriously dark hymn filled with tempo changes, crashing percussion and guitar work that features both low driving tones, and melodic highs. The vocals could be best described as throat-scraping too (in the nicest possible way). It’s great to be able to experience an album by a band that is well established but also fiercely loyal to the underground. Hegeroth’s black metal is shaped by their roots and it’s much more authentic than you might think. Excellent work!

Soaked In Rot is now available to stream in full and purchase on both physical/digital formats from Hegeroth below:-

Hegeroth - https://www.facebook.com/Hegeroth

Vibora - Egin Ez Dugun Guztia

Labels: BCore/Zegema Beach Records

Formats: Vinyl/Digital

Release Date: 20 Feb 2026

Tracklist:

1. Egin Dugun Guztia

2. Sentir Nostalgia de Cosas que Quizá Nunca Pasaron

3. Autoestima

4. Zerbait Ona Idatzi

5. Fotos

6. Blu

7. Ezin Duzu Zure Lagunak Hiltzen Utzi (ft. Miren Narbaiza)

8. 636

9. Nuevas Formas

10. Egin Ez Dugun Guztia

Spanish post-hardcore band Vibora returned in February with their newest album Egin Ez Dugun Guztia, released on vinyl via both BCore and Zegema Beach Records as well as digitally by Vibora. I didn't realise that they hadn't been featured here before, as I could've sworn I had written about them but I first heard about them through fellow Spaniards Crossed. Both bands released a split together in 2022. Vibora have been steadily releasing music since 2019.

Honestly, the skramzphere is getting larger by the day and while we’re already more than half-way through March, keeping up is all but impossible. I can but try though. Opening with ‘Egin Dugun Guztia’, Vibora’s gentle melody subsides fairly quickly, revealing a swirling mix of screamo, metallic hardcore and semi-clean screams/deeper harsh vocals that collide, dancing in perfect harmony. It’s a blasting opener that doesn’t switch off, leading to ’Sentir Nostalgia de Cosas que Quizá Nunca Pasaron’, which is even heavier and more violent. It’s a shock if you were expecting anything lighter, but it’s also an absolute belter if you weren’t! It has everything from emoviolence to metallic hardcore/metalcore and instrumental passages. The feels are real with this one.

‘Autoestima’ scratches that itch for chaotic music in a way that usually only proper tech/mathcore can, so hats off to Vibora for being so agile and genuine. I can’t do this record justice by simply writing words on a page or screen. It needs to be experienced first hand. As I write that statement, the chugging brutality of ‘Zerbait Ona Idatzi’ takes over and with it comes utter madness. This might be the heaviest record ZBR has ever helped to release. 

In a fashion that keeps you guessing, Vibora bring the tempo down on ‘Fotos’. Not only does the tempo drop, but clean singing is introduced, nestling amongst the heaviness that wrestles for center stage. It’s a glorious song that’s way more euphoric than it should be! Crossing the album’s mid-point, ‘Blu’ initially sounds like an ambient interlude before turning into something a lot more art/math-rock like. It’s at this point I realise that those higher pitched screams remind me of many Japanese bands of the same ilk. It’s brief but I love it. 

On ‘Ezin Duzu Zure Lagunak Hiltzen Utzi’, Vibora are joined by fellow Basque musician/singer Miren Narbaiza. It all starts off with familiar heaviness, plus the addition of subtle panic chords for extra intensity.  Miren provides soothing clean singing amongst the chaos, which adds an extra layer of atmosphere that wasn’t expected. After such a gentle ending, ‘636’ shocks you into life with some properly nasty, metallic, even blackened emoviolence. Obviously, Vibora don’t keep that up for the whole time and half-way through they pause, leading to a latter-half filled with introspection and bird song. I love how they keep you guessing.

With such a strong album, reaching the final two songs comes as a surprise. ‘Nuevas Formas’ with its initial screeching feedback and the post-hardcore that follows, shows off both the brutality and the beauty that’s on offer throughout this record. Vibora wait to the very end to unleash their title-track (and longest song) ‘Egin Ez Dugun Guztia’. Rallying cries that encourage us all to be on the right side of history lead into seemingly mid-tempo screamo/hardcore, providing final closure amongst a tremendous barrage of noise.

There’s something very original and raw about this album. Vibora seem to be able to tap into a sound that crosses many boundaries musically, binding heaviness with melody and beauty at the same time. I’m going to stop over-analysing it all now and just say that it’s awesome!

You can purchase the album digitally and on vinyl from Vibora below:-

You can also buy the album on vinyl via the below links:-

BCore - https://bcstore.bcoredisc.com/shop/hardcore-punk/screamo/vibora/vinyl/lp/lp-colour/egin-ez-dugun-guztia/

Zegema Beach Records CAN/INTL - http://www.zegemabeachrecords.com/zegema-beach-releases/vibora2 / USA - https://zbrusa.com/collections/zbr-releases/products/vibora2

Vibora Instagram - @viboraband

BCore - https://www.facebook.com/bcoredisc

Zegema Beach Records - https://bsky.app/profile/zegemabeachrecords.bsky.social

Feretro - The Mortuary Destiny of Flesh

Labels: Despise The Son Records/Nihilistic Holocaust Records

Formats: CD/Tape/Digital

Release Date: 06 Sep 2025

Tracklist:

1. Twilight of Life

2. Towards Perishment

3. The Ancient Horror

4. In Agony

5. The Hour of Death

6. Time to Die

7. Death's Cycle

8. Flesh for Worms

9. Epitaph

On Monday just gone, I posted about one half of the promo package I recently received from French label Visceral Circuitry Records (the January CD pressing of Null by Peasant God). The second half of that package contained a promo cdr of the 2025 album The Mortuary Destiny of Flesh from Chilean death metal band Feretro. The album was released last September by Visceral Circuitry's sister label Nihilistic Holocaust Records, while Chilean label Despise The Son Records released in on tape in December.

The album marked Feretro's twentieth year as a band, a time that has seen them release five demos, two EPs, a compilation and a split tape prior to (this) their debut full-length. In true old-school fashion, Feretro have no social media presence (to my knowledge) and let the independent labels they work with, spread the word.

Another new band gracing the blog thanks to somebody much more in the know than myself! It’s also great to see that people still invest time in putting together proper physical release promos. It’s a trend I’m seeing more of this year, so far. Feretro begin The Mortuary Destiny of Flesh with instrumental intro ‘Twilight of Life’,  which sounds grandiose and acts as the perfect build-up to the rest of the album. What comes next is a shock to the system as it brings raging thrash together with gutter-dwelling death metal. ‘Towards Perishment’ comes at you with changing tempos, frenetic percussion, groove-laden bass, buzzsaw riffs and bellowed vocals that nod towards death metal’s greats.

‘The Ancient Horror’ follows on and encapsulates the sound that Feretro have been honing across their twenty-year existence so far. A sound that hits you with ripping speed while also ploughing the lowest furrows of murky death metal, albeit with the odd slick guitar solo thrown in because why the hell not! So far, this album has been filled with up-tempo bangers and that continues with ‘in Agony’, to start with at least, before you’re dragged into a realm of abject misery in the mid section. It switches up again for the final-third, with riffs that take on an avant-garde form, which was evident earlier too now that I think of it.

There’s a greater doom/sludge influence going on at the beginning of ‘The Hour of Death’, as dual guitar melodies coupled with slower bass/drum progression in what is an extremely solid (almost entirely instrumental) song except for the closing few seconds of gurgling horror. ‘Time to Die’ takes you back to Feretro’s blasting and thrashing sound once again, where they fire on all cylinders to create yet more blistering extremity. 

This wouldn’t be an old-school death metal album if it didn’t contain at least one properly lengthy song. It comes in the form of ‘Death’s Cycle’ that stretches over 8+ minutes and is filled with progressive trickery, as well as stellar song-writing. It shows how maturing naturally as a band can really benefit that first album! It’s been twenty years for Feretro but it’s been absolutely worth the wait, as I’m sure those of you in the know will agree!

Penultimate banger ‘Flesh for Worms’ whips up the pace once again and thanks to more exceptional lead guitar work (alongside the rest of the band), leaves you wanting more. I’m really going to have to dig further into the Chilean scene now, as I keep seeing people mention how good it is and hearing this album cements that. Ending aptly with ‘Epitaph’, Feretro seem to dig up added rawness out of nowhere but also add warmth with brief synth tones too. It’s quite a bizarre way to close out the album but it works!

I’m truly grateful to both Nihilistic Holocaust Records and Visceral Circuitry Records for introducing me to two bands I otherwise wouldn’t have come across. Feretro are excellent and if like me, you’re an old-school death metal lover, then this album is perfect for you.

You can stream and purchase The Mortuary Destiny of Flesh digitally, as well as on CD from Nihilistic Holocaust Records below (European fans only):-

You can also buy the CD here via the label's webstore - https://nihilistic-webzine-distro.fr/Webshop/en/accueil/3490-feretro-chile-the-mortuary-destiny-of-flesh-cd.html

Sadly, I haven't been able any links to Despise The Son Records. If anybody reading this knows of any information or of a webstore, please let me know!

Feretro - https://feretro.bandcamp.com/album/promo

Nihilistic Holocaust Records - https://www.facebook.com/nihilisticzinedistro

Peasant God - Null

Labels: Self-Released/Visceral Circuitry Records

Formats: Tape/Digital

Release Date: 21 Sep 2017

Tracklist:

1. Hate Itch

2. Yours to Suffer

3. Erased

4. Mindlapse

5. Last Gasp

6. Null

A while ago now I reviewed the 2025 full-length Mykka pimeys by Finnish sludge band Ilon Lapset, which was co-released via French extreme metal/industrial/noise label Visceral Circuitry Records (alongside Finnish label Ramekuukkeli-levyt). That review sparked correspondence between the both of us and about a week or so ago now, I received a package containing two sweet cdr promos. The first of which was to promote the label's tape pressing of Null by Swedish doom/industrial/sludge duo Peasant God.

The duo, featuring members of acts including Dead Existence, Grave Lines and Walking Corpse (amongst others) self-released Null digitally back in 2017. At the same time, Visceral Circuitry also gave it a home to help spread the music further. Earlier this year, they released it on tape for the first time. 

After receiving some potentially sobering news earlier about roof repair, I’m ready to sink into something noisy. Reading that Peasant God have been compared to the likes of Godflesh, early Pitchshifter and Body Void; I knew this release would hit the spot. The low-tuned guitar/bass, deep growls and clinical beats say all that need to be said this early on.

This is a demo by Peasant God’s own admission but it doesn’t feel like one, especially given the experience of the musicians here. ‘Yours to Suffer’ is a march of arduous proportions. Early on, its tempo doesn’t deviate all that much but later on it gets weirder, and faster too. Peasant God begin to add in subtle psychedelic/off-kilter effects too.

‘Erased’ is a noise-filled interlude that pulsates uncomfortably for nearly a minute, leading you into ‘Mindlapse’. Shutting myself off and turning the volume up really helps to bring this release to life. It definitely reminds me of when I was first deep diving into doom and sludge. I know this release it much more than just a nod to those sub-genres as it revels in industrial heaviness too.

You’d be forgiven for thinking that ‘Last Gasp’ was the demo’s final song, but it’s not. It is the longest song here though and it has that driving intensity that might not be fast, but is properly engrossing. The mesmeric bass/guitar tones and tempo are key. Closing with title track ‘Null’, Peasant God go all out with the noisy industrial weirdness and it’s honestly pretty inspiring. 

Sometimes, the harshest noise can bring the greatest clarity. I think that applies to Peasant God. Almost nine years on from its original release, Null delivers both an aural battering and a realistic take on the state of the world. Excellent!

You can stream and grab Null as a name-your-price download from Peasant God below:-

Tape copies can be purchased from Visceral Circuitry Records via bandcamp below:-https://visceralcircuitryrecs.bandcamp.com/album/null

Peasant God - https://www.facebook.com/peasantgod/

Visceral Circuitry Records - https://www.facebook.com/visceralcircuitryrecs