Dephosphorus - Planetoktonos (7Degrees Records/Nerve Altar/Selfmadegod Records)
Unleashing cosmic energy powerful enough to destroy solar systems, Greek extreme metal act Dephosphorus throw their lot in to the increasing power of A.I on their new record Planetoktonos. Roughly translated to 'planet killer' the album is inspired by the "anarchic utopia imagined by Iain M. Banks in The Culture books" where humanity and technology coexists, while they also spin this through a darkened lense as the threat of rogue A.I gets stronger every day.
They match science/cosmology with existentialism/politics, with plenty of literary influences coming from the Expanse novel series by James S.A. Corey, a number of tracks gain inspiration from this series including the title track. Lyrically and thematically the band have a very high level of accomplishment, dealing with very large concepts surrounding the nature of humanity.
However unless you really listen you'll miss anything they have to say as the vocals often are indecipherable, I think they may be in Greek and English however as they sound like they're being performed while the singer was being asphyxiated I can't actually tell you. I'm not sure why they decided on this style but this is their fifth album so I assume it's how they want to sound.
The music side full of energetic menace, I guess you could call it blackened technical grindcore as Dephosphorus bludgeon and batter with death and grindcore groves but then their ominous passages of electronics and a general malaise in the way it's recorded that provides a raw, woozy sound to the whole record. This is an interesting release however the vocals do dampen it for me. 6/10
Scorched Earth - Bloodspill EP (Self Released)
To my mind Bloodspill, the debut EP from Scorched Earth feels like Children Of Bodom meets Lamb Of God. The Patras based band are relatively new to the scene but already have very defined sound. The six tracks here have a lot of groove metal chugging in the riff sections (Descension) but that lead guitarist loves to play solos and widdly bits, leaving room for plenty of air guitar.
Bloodspill creates a union of stomping aggression and melodic dexterity, 80's influences run rampant on Origins while the likes of Pantera show up on Groundhog Day, as they slow everything they do right down. The performances are strong with every track worth a listen for me though the dynamics of Six Feet Under and the creeping Slayer-like title track work the best in showing what Scorched Earth can do. A good debut EP from a relatively new band with lots of potential. 7/10
Actus Septem - The Bleeding (Fatres Records)
Blackened Doom from Lamia/Athens now with Actus Septem a sibling trio who have been around since 2016. Constionf of the brothers Moschos, Giorgos (vocals), Nick (guitar/drums) and E (guitars) the trio are joined by Kostis Prassas on bass (and production) to create this second full length record, their first new music since 2021.
So what sort of music is it? Well very comparable to many in the Hellenic Extreme metal scene, the black metal tremolos are raging over blasting drums, then things switch into propulsive grooves built on repetition. So there's heavy tips of the hat to Rotting Christ and Varathron but also Nightfall and our own Paradise Lost on tracks such as Lord Unveiled and Absent. Embracing their countries metallic history, Actus Septem style true to their roots with this second record. 7/10
Synteleia - Sands Of Madness (Metal Throne Productions)
Taking it back to the 90's again is the melancholic, blackened sounds of Synteleia. Agonising background screams and snarling vocals your definitely taken back in time to the those savage early days of the Hellenic Extreme scene, much like Funeral Storm who they have collaborated with in the past, they use atmospherics to invoke the the dark side, expanding their soundscapes from just being straight ahead black metal.
Lyrically inspired by the occult, the devil and dark ones, their logo even taking the form of a pentagram, they are another band from the Hellenic scene who follow the Left Hand Path as they unleash waves of trem picking and blast beats often shifting into mid-pace chugs with tracks such as Thou My Vice. A four track stopgap between albums that keeps the heathen flame of Synteleia burning. 7/10
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