Into Darkness - Into Darkness (2012)

   Since in the late '00s it became widespread that demo releases often having so great sound quality like ordinary album releases, and sometimes even sounding better than some (black metal) studio records. This tendency had stimulus effect by the way more enjoyable sound quality, cause more fans became interested to add demos into their collections, and it wasn't only the intention of the most obsessed collectors anymore. Furthermore, demos started to have further releases, on CD and vinyl too. The same happened with Into Darkness' first demo, even though it was basically released on tape by following pretty old school fashion.

   Not only it's sound, but the music in general had made it reasonable that the interest kept staying around the self-titled demo. The band operated with quite simple, repetitive themes, but they've been embedded into such catchy sludgy / blackened atmosphere, that the main impression didn't become monotonous. Also the mixed influences had quite good and (according to this musically minimalist style) diverse effect. Similar to old school death/doom bands, their music doesn't lack intensity either, in the second and fourth songs they show, that slow, heavy themes and devastating speed do not exclude each other. Maybe because some specific features, like the basic themes, the higher toned female vocal style and the almost narrative vocal performance, their music might remind to Mythic. But Into Darkness is far not that primitive and their music is introducing a wider perspective to the listener. Since it was not only a pretty stunning demo for a debut, but musically diverse too, it could become a potential favorite for wider extreme music fan audiences too. 

shEver - Rituals (2012)

   By their second full length album, shEver continued their journey on the not too intentional path of death/doom with occult and depressive touch. 

   Probably the most remarkable feature of the album compared to "Ocean of Illusions" is the way better sound. At one hand it's quite advantageous for the selected style, cause heavy themes could easier prevail by clean sound. While in case of too noisy sound they losing from their effectiveness, often could have dull impression, and noise itself taking the determining role. At the other hand, if the band previously called their music sludge metal influenced, they should take it back if it's about "Rituals". Clean sound could neutralize the essence of sludgy elements, just as it happens here, because dirty, noisy, sound is one of the most basic requirements to sound sludgy. However, it works great, and makes the ominous feeling even more enjoyable than ever. If it's about themes, it could be sensed, that the band tried to experiment with something different than before, to involve more melodic, and the same time strongly melancolic parts. On the side of expressing depressive feelings, the occult, witchy tone was also intended to keep, but if it's about the implementation, the band seemed a bit idefinitive, like if they haven't been sure how to manage the whole thing. There are plenty of catchy heavy themes and musical solutions to hear on the record, but because of the mentioned experimenting ambitions, the album gets tired at the end. The band slipped with previously so well kept balance on the last two songs, and they became so weird like if they were not even planned for the same album like the previous songs, or if they haven't been ready yet. Except this 16 minutes long not so fitting weirdness (or wyrdness), "Ritual" is a great death/doom record, strongly recommended for the fans of the genre!

Intractable - Inner Decay (2012)

   Intractable's one and only full-length album was on the border of old school and new wave tendencies. The interesting paradox about "Inner Decay" was, that even though the two directions the band merged are quite relatable, the audiences of these specific scenes are rarely covering each other.

   Despite Intractable's music definitely had '90s roots, the result sounds quite mid-late '00s influenced. It could be for two possible reasons. First, the groovy thrash metal they played have very similar influences like what metalcore had basically. Since metalcore on the side of major hardcore and groove metal elements also included some simplified "dummy" form of thrash metal, it might be not a surprising outcome if groove/thrash ends up sounding similar to metalcore. The other, maybe even more possible reason is the band members direct influences came by the actual scene, that they most possibly had in the '00s. That decade was also about the fast rising and spreading of metalcore, and even though Intractable preferred thrash hammering instead of melodic switches, their music still had the same '00s hardcore/metalcore touch. The lyrical concept of social criticism is compatible with both styles, therefore it could serve as a unifying bond between, if such a thing is needed on the side of musical analogy. "Inner Decay" might be compatible with both thrash metal and hardcore / metalcore audiences, it's definitely mosh pit suitable music.

Atomwinter - Atomic Death Metal (2012)

   Atomwinter came out with a stunning debut in 2012, that could all-round fit to the definition of old school death metal. It doesn't offer anything more or less, but still, it might worth to take a closer look (or listen).

   Nobody could say that the early '10s lacked new old school death metal releases, thanks to the actual tendencies of the underground. "Atomic Death Metal" sounded like intending to recall the basic impression of the genre by it's simple and mainly groovy themes, middle speed, and frequent switches to thrash hammering. Fortunately they didn't go too far with the groovy parts, and the theme and speed switches are always timed good and frequent enough to not let the album to slip into boredom. Even though simplicity and essential features might be the the most determining description for the record, the band operated with them quite well to validate the old rule: "less is more". The themes are catchy enough, and an expected upcoming theme or speed switch will always occur before anything would turn too monotonous. Their influences could be various, but most possibly the mix of the Tampa Florida and Swedish death metal scenes. The concept is also usual, just a reintroduction of something in a way that have been proven in the past countless times that it could work well that way, carried out with "Deutsche Genauigkeit". 

Graveyard Ghoul - Tomb of the Mouldered Corpses (2012)

   Graveyard Ghoul had a quite old school debut by the "Tomb of the Mouldered Corpses", that mainly recalled the atmosphere and feeling of the early Autopsy albums.
   On the side of the early '90s preference, probably there have been further endeavors to imitate the sound of the oldest death metal records, to create something all-round vintage, that even sounds ancient enough. This of course doesn't have too advantageous influence on the main impression, cause in this case the album sounds similarly dull like most British death metal releases, and that takes a lot from the effectiveness of their intensity. However, if the vintage concept have absolute priority, this might be a small price to pay, and from this aspect the album is quite enjoyable, so the band's goal was fully accomplished. The songs are pretty short, and usually switching between thrash speed and ominous slow downs, that intended to demoralize the listener (typical to Autopsy). The themes are kinda simple and basic, but for a retro nostalgia concept that's good enough, nothing else is needed. If the last, instrumental song of the album was skipped, the full length would make it to an EP, and since the last track doesn't add much, it wouldn't be a big problem. It's just a simple, endlessly repetitive track that supposed to illustrate the monotonous existence and march of the brainless undead, but for the fans of vintage horror, it might be appreciating. In total it's all-round ancient and essential death metal, following the strict inspirational guidance of  early '90s metal and '80s pop culture influences. 

Deserted fear - My Empire (2012)

   Deserted Fear debuted in 2012 with "My Empire" and a couple of years later they became Germany's No.1 death metal band, and it's not difficult to see why. However, various components had to align to make this possible.

   It's one thing that "My Empire" was a stunning debut, and the band's timing and formation was also perfect, cause by the New Wave of Old School Death Metal more focus turned on the '90s extreme metal scene, and many bands were inspired by this tendency as well. At least in the underground, cause the mainstream scene seemed unaffected. And also this description could fit on many other young bands too, who started in the same style. But Deserted Fear's music was somehow easier to go into, and the same time the compromise-less intensity remained too. Basically they had Swedish death metal influences, that they've applied in a softer form, and quite catchy, melodic themes were involved to make their music sound more diverse compared to most other new death metal formations. By this step they didn't go too far (for now) to become a melodic death metal band, which usually means to lose nearly all death metal musical features. They preferred to keep them as main determining themes, while the melodic parts are more like completing elements. A few years later this combination proved to be enough impressive even for Century Media to write a contract with them, which is basically equal with breaking into the mainstream scene. At this point it might be interesting to note, that even though nowadays biggest metal labels like Century Media, Nuclear Blast or Earache Records have started to release extreme underground music, and many well known and lesser known cultic albums came out under their labels from the late '80s, they rarely offering a contract to similar bands nowadays. Their methodism in the hope for bigger profit drifted them further from the all-time underground scene, and probably they also grew too old to pay attention to the actual tendencies. However, Deserted Fear was one of the rare lucky exceptions, when the chance to grow big was given to a truly worthy band. Probably the only thing that keeps them away from wider success is that they're not willing to get their asses to play outside Germany (occasional gigs in Switzerland and Austria doesn't make much difference). 

Charon - Sulphur Seraph (The Achron Principle) (2012)

   By "Sulphur Seraph" Charon unleashed such an extremely heavy album, that's definitely wasn't usual to hear before in the German metal scene, or from European bands in general. The band's first and so far last full-lenght record had such  raw extremity, that could be compared mainly to Incantation influenced American bands like Disma, or to the most exaggerated Australian bands like Impetuous Ritual. In the European scene, maybe Undergang and Putrevore showed up with something comparable, but since Charon's music included black metal influences too, maybe Impetuous Ritual is the closest.

   These black metal influences might be not so clear at first, but as the album goes on, they evolving and taking significant role in defining the sound, which is definitely following mainly death metal tendencies. The  black and death metal themes and greatly composed together, and that's the reason why their influences on the sound could be difficult to distinguish first. The album is all-round unified and even though the rawness of the themes making 'Sulphur Seraph" hard to go into, it's also the main factor of how this unification as a whole is working so well. As a heavily obscure, noisy mass, the main impression is quite devastating, and frequent higher toned short guitar effects providing with the feeling of some extra demoralizing ominous hopelessness, if the main view wasn't be enough dire. The combination of such brutality and heavily down-pulling atmosphere became more common with time in the main scene, partly because of it's impressive effectiveness, and partly to show the most exaggerated aspect of old school styles. This direction needs highly skilled and resourceful musicians, therefore the appearance of similar bands is kinda sporadic. Charon was one of the earliest examples for this in Europe. "Sulphur Seraph" is an excellent album, strongly recommended for the fans of the most inhuman, most extreme forms of musickness.