Phlebotomy - Voluptuous... (1994)

Genre: Atmospheric Gothic Doom/Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1994

1. Voluptuous Simplicity of the Line
2. One Thousand Times
3. A Dreamer Can Touch the Sky

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What. Is this still Phlebotomy? I'll admit, I had to do a double take, and check out On Thorns I Lay to see if this was still the same band... Sure enough, a few of these songs were used on their first full-length. With the name change most certainly came a drastic change in style. I sort of knew this was coming after their EP, but hey, what can you do, especially since this all went down in the mid 90s.

This would be a good demo, had it been a different band playing different music. I was almost shocked to hear this, so naturally, it didn't sit too well. The production value has been cranked way up; these guys must've started getting serious about the music they were playing and the direction they wanted to take. A lot has changed, most notably the vocals. My ears may be deceiving me, but it looks as if all male vocals were scrapped in favor of a variety of female vocals ranging from singing to harsh whispering (haha), to the occasional shriek.

The goth was turned up as well; however, still retaining the atmosphere from the previous releases, if not chippered up a bit with extravagant use of synths and flutes and other instruments. A lot of that spacey atmosphere has been lost in return for production. It was probably a good idea that they changed name, because what they do now just isn't Paralysis/Phlebotomy.

Phlebotomy - Dawn of Grief (1993)

Genre: Atmospheric Doom/Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1993

1. Born To Suffer
2. As the Sky Turns Black

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Much better production; about time these guys got signed to a label! Two songs here and the first is an old favorite from their promo tape, "Born to Suffer". The cheesy intro and exit bits that I pointed out in the Promo Tape review are removed to allow focus to fall on the song itself without any distractions or wtf moments. Not so sure if I'm a fan of the production... it is better, but it also gives the EP a "tinny" feel, especially with the scratchy guitars and glowering synths. Everything is better balanced, though; vocals and drums are further up front and this EP certainly sounds more complete.

New song! Looks like this marks the point where Phlebotomy are turning away from their doomy sound, and onto something a little more intense. Synths galore are still present all over the place, but female vocals are kicked up a few more notches, seemingly going even with the harsh vocals. Everything is faster-paced and almost industrial. This song marks the band's transition to a new style that you will see in "Voluptuous..."

Phlebotomy - Promo Tape (1993)

Note: Artwork unavailable

Genre: Atmospheric Doom/Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1993

1. Intro
2. Our Golgotha Before The Beauty Of Our Death
3. Born To Suffer
4. Stories Of The Internal Of My Grave (Parts I and II)

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A classical intro... that's more like it! Immediately, I know I can expect the same style Paralysis got me hooked on, and I can't be more excited. In the same vein as the previous demo: occult synthesizers saturating the air, accompanied by subtle melodic fringes keep this music fresh and engaging. Clean vocals are introduced here and there, serving to add more to the arcane atmosphere. Melodic, acoustic interludes are spackled throughout to break up the lengthy songs.

Gloomy, dark, and highly atmospheric, the tracks on this demo are oddly entrancing, especially on "Born to Suffer" with the inclusion of mystical flowing female vocals. This is great music to reflect on pretty much anything you want. "Born to Suffer" brings us back to reality with a grim intro assailing the listener with machine gun fire and an old school Hellenic riff, yet takes us away again above the clouds, only to yank us back down with that key riff and marching drums. Not too clear how exactly those effects tie in, but it does add to the variety to make things interesting.

The synthesizers are used to great extend, with myriad sound effects such as the aforementioned, but also some new ones like fire crackling and wind blowing. They were going for atmosphere with this one, and Phlebotomy certainly hit the nail on the head! Deep, booming production presides, collapsing the very atmosphere above down on us. Recommended.

Paralysis (Grc) - Beyond The Chaos (1992)

Genre: Atmospheric Doom/Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1992

1. Your Life... My Death
2. Born to Suffer
3. Dark Reality

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Multiple name changes here. These guys started out at Paralysis, changed to Phlebotomy in 1993, and finally to the well-known On Thorns I Lay in 1995. This is their first demo, and it really sets the stage for the successful career they've sculpted.

Right out of the box, the mood is set with the eerily disturbing intro. A monologue of sorts, littered with creepy, spacy synths. "Please let me go; I don't want to die..." The same feel is translated through the rest of the demo. I'm hesitant to call it "epic", but it does have a very mysterious and foreboding tone to it all. I feel like The Outsider in Lovecraft's famous early work. Not knowing where I'm going or what I'm going to find, I just keep climbing... the future will reveal itself to me. What will I discover beyond the chaos?

Melody abounds and heavy use of synthesizers aids in the atmosphere surrounding the chaos. Very deep and mystical-sounding, this is like an adventure through your mind. Eerie flute-sounding instruments are used, sprinkled with dangerously-close guitars make this a unique and fascinating listen. Recommended!

Funeral Revolt - Γαία Υπερφιάλων Αθεμιστών (1994)

Genre: Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1994

1. Γαία Υπερφιάλων Αθεμιστών

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Christos from Sanctorum sent me this exquisite promo demo years ago, and I see he has now posted it on Youtube, but I figured it could do with an "official" blog release! This is the original mp3, not that compressed Youtube crap (first guy who tells me mp3s are compressed gets my foot up their ass); this track deserves it!

Mind. Blown. Quite possibly one of my favorite songs with perhaps the most infectious Hellenic riff my ears have ever had the good fortune of absorbing. As the years passed, Funeral Revolt has dropped the dark, filthy sludgy guitar tone in favor of something with a little more vitality and vigor. It all comes together in this tiny demo released at the end of the first phase of Funeral Revolt, unfortunately.

From the beginning to the all-too-soon ending (even though the song is a solid 6 minutes long), the main riff will hold you to the edge of your seat, gripping your musical palate so tightly, you'll find yourself unable to do much of anything until the song has finished. I actually had to stop listening to this song long enough to write this review, as I would keep getting lost in the music and zoning out. Ripping double bass brings out the intensity of the riff at times, while female vocals rain down beauty, with tasteful solos the glue that brings it all together into a tight little package bursting at the seams that'll leave anyone begging for more... sadly it won't come.

Enjoy this one, folks. You'll get quite some replay value from this gem. Recommended.

Funeral Revolt - Burial (1991)

Genre: Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1991

1. Burial
2. Fly Beyond
3. Lamentation
4. Concealment of Truth
5. Solitude

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I figured the best place to begin again would be precisely where I left off, so here we have another EP from the dynamic Funeral Revolt! To those who have been following this blog for the past year (ololol), you've listened to Brutality Domain. That was a very gritty, dirty-sounding demo, and Funeral Revolt have cleaned up their act rapidly (two drastically different sounding demos in one year?) with their latest offering.

The first thing that struck me was how well the first three tracks meshed together. Hell, this could have been a short and sweet EP with just those songs and you wouldn't find me complaining. I'll treat the other two as an added bonus! "Burial" starts off as an eerie, synthetic dark ambient track that I'll refer to as the "inhale". The "exhale" comes with "Lamentation", the perfect acoustic closing act to the expansive and powerful "Fly Beyond".

The entire demo is very riff-heavy, and you can begin to see the roots of Funeral Revolt's embrace of the distinct Hellenic riffing style. Synths are used much more on this release, leading to an atmospheric and ancient-sounding aura, clashing surprisingly well with the guttural destruction inherent in all Death Metal. I get the vibe of controlled chaos (if that even makes sense) throughout this release, every song flitting on the edge of pandemonium, yet somehow confined in the boundaries of order through methodical solos and pinpoint drumming.

Pleasantly surprised, considering the previous demo's style. Recommended.

Funeral Revolt - Brutality Domain (1991)

Genre: Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1991

1. Collective Carbonization
2. Interminable Excruciation
3. Brutality Domain

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I thought I'd post some stuff from Funeral Revolt, seeing as this stuff is quite sought after, and so I'll begin with their 1991 release Brutality Domain. Unfortunately, I don't have their first demo, Homicidal Society, and I can't find much information on it other than the link at Metal Archives, so it's hard to tell if it even exists! If anybody's got it, send it this way! Thanks!

Anyway, this is nothing like the industrial direction they've gone in of late, so if you were turned off by their recent stuff, you've no need to look any further than the next couple of posts here! Present on this demo is raw Death Metal in the utmost old-school fashion. Sometimes bordering on the doomy, slow side of things, while speeding up at other times, when combined with the longer song structures, expect some well-thought out songs. Solos are used throughout, sometimes several in a single song, but they are not overdone or wanky in any way; always done to ADD to the song, and never to take away. Yes, I have problems with solos in songs. Too much wank, not enough music! Oho! Probably why I hate Thrash... ANYWAY, back to the demo.

There's nothing special about the vocals, but they are decent gutturals that complement the songs quite nicely, meshing well with that classic Greek Hellenic riffing style. Watch out for their 1994 promo, that shit's got some crazy riffing!

Natural Fear - Beyond Eternity (1992)

Genre: Atmospheric Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1992

1. Intro/Souless Traitoration
2. Beyond Eternity

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Even more rare stuff from Greece! This is the only demo that I know of released by Natural Fear. I really like this demo. It's very short, but oh so sweet with two different styles of songs. Both start off with a far-off, distant-sounding introduction riff, leading into a mix of chunky and serene-like Death Metal with heavy use of synths. It sounds like it could go the brutal route, but then tapers off into spacey synths reminding me of the dark night sky, clear with stars spackling the heavens.

The second song sounds VERY familiar, especially the opening riff, and if any of you can pinpoint what this sounds like, I'll give you a cookie. It could just be my imagination, though! This track seems a bit darker and more foreboding than the other, and has a set, slow to mid-paced assault that doesn't let up, the drums pounding near the back, getting closer and closer and closer... Strangely enough, it's an almost calming style of Death Metal; difficult to explain.

Regardless, this one's only about six minutes long, so you could listen to this hidden gem twice in the time it takes to shower! Get it!

EDIT: Bingo! The familiarity comes from The Chasm... specifically "In Superior Torment". Interestingly enough, this demo came out years before Deathcult for Eternity: The Triumph...

Dismaed - Messages From The Place of The Dead (1995)

Genre: Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1995

1. Bleeding
2. Erebus
3. Aeternus Dark
4. Escaping Soul

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Another forgotten Hellenic band from the bowels of Greece, we have Dismaed. Some very atmospheric stuff is present here, sometimes melodic, sometimes straight-forward Death Metal with a punch. I'm sure most of you can recognize that classic Hellenic riffing style, heavy tremolo picking with higher pitched riffs that seem to be never-ending, saturating each song. In addition, there are spouts of synthesized melody to create eerie overtones in between vocal parts. This is used to great effectiveness in giving the atmosphere on Messages From The Place of The Dead a creepy feel akin to a place where you would find dead people! Ohoho! It sounds very spiritual and fits the imagery of the dead appearing before the living.

The pacing on this demo is particularly interesting, varying from slow, breakdown styled, deliberate riffing, to full-fledged, fast paced chaos, drums pounding away, the vocalist going crazy, and quick riffs galore. A very solid release and pretty damn rare, to boot!

Gotta give this one my seal of approval. "Aeternus Dark" is a fabulous song.

Sanctorum - Crystal Tears of Silence (1994)

Genre: Atmospheric Doom/Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1994

1. Flight of the Dragons
2. Silent and Forgotten
3. Crimson Dawn

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Holy fuck! Not quite sure how I came across this breathtaking Doom/Death band, but after seeking out this magnificent demo, I was awestruck. The kids were young at the time of this recording, the youngest being 15 years old, but displaying truly mind-boggling talent and incredible metallian prowess. It's a crying shame that Greece's military policies forced this band to split up, as they show so much potential with this masterpiece.

Clocking in at 28:56, sit back and prepare yourself for a journey of monolithic proportions through the three songs presented here. I'm not calling these guys Atmospheric for nothing, and this demo just oozes aloof, spacey undertones in a very memorable fashion, leaving the melodies embedded in your mind for days after even a single listen. Some of the most inventive and well-structured riffing I've heard in a long time. Tremolo picking is key, yet the band somehow retains a doomy, crushing, overpowering sound. I feel I'm in the lone guy at the bottom of Beksinski's ominous valley, traversing this unknown territory, letting the music wash over me... a bit overproduced, further accentuating the suffocating atmosphere, wrapping the listener up in the music. Just wait until you're hit with the occasional interlude... beautiful. The way these songs are constructed just defies my preconceptions about metal in 1993. Needless to say, Sanctorum was way ahead of its time!

Bonus fun fact: the band initially had all three of these songs rehearsed for a total of 33 or so minutes, but unknowingly bought analog cassettes that only allowed for 30 minutes of recording! Whoops! So the band had to play all these songs faster.

This is Christos's (the drummer) Youtube channel if you'd like to see what he's up to, or contact him. Those of you who'd like to contact him directly via email, send me an email and I'll hook you up.

Note that the recordings here come directly from the drummer, Christos, at 320kbps, much better quality than the Youtube rip floating around now. Also, this is the correct artwork, the one with the red lettering is most likely fan made. Scans of the entire inlay are available in the .rar archive uploaded here!

Lethargy - The Dark Embrace of Silence (1999)

Genre: Melodic Doom/Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1999

1. Celestial Tears
2. Spleen In The Morning Mist
3. Where The Wind Whispers Your Name
4. Under A Broken Moon
5. As My Soul Bewails
6. Veils Of Sorrow
7. These Bitter Words

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Greece is my new favorite country for music. Such talent coming in such small, unrecognized bursts! This is very melodic in that gorgeous melodies are employed regularly, giving this a very sophisticated and sorrowful sound. Catchy riffing meshes beautifully with both male and female vocals to create an atmospheric and majestic air about it. Moody and depressing in some respects, both harsh and clean vocal styles are utilized, and the operatic singing blends fantastically with the female operatics, complementing each other quite nicely, before dipping into doomy Death Metal chugging with harsh vocals. Great contrast throughout this album, with myriad instruments used, including, but not limited to, synths and flutes! Unique, to say the least, and a very engaging listen! Recommended!

Absence of Dawn - And the Sun is Fading... (1996)

Genre: Atmospheric Doom/Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 1996

1. Nature Drops
2. Sky Pain
3. Wind Flower
4. And the Sun is Fading...

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Greece seems to have a nasty habit of restricting the creative genius of many young bands! Damn military... but that's a story for another time. Here we have a lone demo from 1996 by an unknown band that plays a slow-paced, melodic type of doomy death metal. There's not much in terms of pacing or drumming, but the atmosphere and imagery evoked is exactly that of the demo title: And the Sun is Fading... Most of the time, a simple riff is utilized throughout an entire song, and not much is varied in terms of song structure. So why am I posting this here? For some reason, this demo holds my interest. On paper, it sounds like it shouldn't, but just enough melody is used to create a depressing atmosphere and can sound like a fantastic demo if in the right mood. The production wears a bit thin at times and the vocals sometimes aren't the best, but despite all these flaws, this sounds GOOD. Nothing more to it. Would absolutely love to hear this remastered or even re-recorded with some heavier-tuned instruments.

Nocturnal Vomit - Arts Of Tenebrous Superstition (2006)

Genre: Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 2006

1. Intro (Suspiria) - Putrid Grave Mass
2. Temple Of Impurity

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A later offering from Nocturnal Vomit, this is much more put-together and organized release, as opposed to some of their earlier demos. There are effectively only two songs and they are much longer than the usual Nocturnal Vomit song-length. I can feel a strong sense of direction and the "I don't care" attitude is definitely gone and replaced with a fiercer, more productive one. The production has improved and the guitars no longer get lost in the mix, paving the way for some awesome riffing. The vocalist seems to have gotten down his style and it appears they brought in another vocalist at points to do a higher-pitched messier growl. Much better than their previous offerings, grab this!

Nocturnal Vomit - Infernal Ascension of the Gods (2003)

Genre: Death Metal
Country: Greece
Year: 2003

1. Intro (Nocturnal Vomit)
2. The Bell tolls of Apocalypse
3. Winds of Disintegration
4. Iron Goat Warfare Command
5. War Demonic Union
6. Infernal Ascension of the Gods

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Still a relatively unknown band from Greece, despite having released a slew of demos and compilations and EPs and stuff (but no full-length!), Nocturnal Vomit play a down-to-earth style of Death Metal. I guess you could label it as War metal (even though I hate that term) because it has that certain aggressiveness and in-your-face-ness. The riffs are often thrash-based and the drums can be chaotic and wild. The vocals also aren't quite growls, but not yells, either, sort of a mixture of both, which also helps to give this demo that loud "We're gonna kick your ass" vibe!