Norselaw -

Genre: Heavy Metal, Speed Metal, Fucking Metal
Label: Unsigned

Man, who would have thought that buying an album based entirely on pity would yield such positive results? Allow me to explain:

Norselaw himself apparently had a dispute with his then employer that ended with his (in my opinion, wrongful) termination. Having only recently lost my job due to similar but completely different circumstances, I decide to toss my fellow warrior a bone and bought one of his albums. He 'suggested Serpent In The Circling Sea' as it would play to my tastes... how this metal marauder knew such a thing is still a mystery to me, but goddamn, was he ever right!

'Serpent In The Circling' Sea features a plethora of headbanging highlights from beginning to end. Norselaw's mastery of the art of the shred, for one. Where on Earth did this guy learn to wield a guitar in such a manner? My guess is he transferred whatever skills he learned as an axe swinging viking from hundreds of years ago to his new modern day "axe". Or at the very least, he's The Doof Warrior from Mad Max... hmmm...

Up next on the docket, we have the vocals. Let's get the clean vocals out of the way; they're rough. Not bad by a long shot, but they could definitely use some refining. As for his bellowing, fuck man, if he shouted at me to, "Get out of the way," in that tone, I'd be in the next state over before he could finish his command. Motherfucker is scary.

Have I mention lyrical content yet? Norselaw pulls his imagery from everyday political strife ("fat blue line guarded by swiiiiine!"), to Conan The Barbarian to H.P. fucking Lovecraft. And speaking of Lovecraft, Fungi From Yuggoth is one of the best tracks on the album, not only due to the ever-presence of the Old Ones, but because of Jamie Lannister's energetic drumming. Guy lets his fucking hair down and says, "fuck your ability to ever hear anything ever again!" and proceeds to rupture the eardrums of anyone within range in a berserk barrage of percussive power!

If you walk away from this review and can only manage to remember one thing, make it this: Norselaw is law. These guys fucking rule!

Magister Templi - Lucifer Leviathan Logos

Magister Templi managed to sneak up on my aging ass from half a planet away (the metal hub also known as Oslo, Norway) and ran me through with their debut full-length album, Lucifer Leviathan Logos…that makes them sound more like ninjas rather than the masterful metal maestros that they are.

At any rate, Lucifer Leviathan Logos is an album that blindsided me with its modesty, purity, and, well, for lack of a better word, Mercyful Fate-iness. I was expecting more of a Moss-ish sound from these guys (which would have been awesome, too), but as soon as Master Of The Temple started up, I knew I was in for something special.

In case I haven’t made it clear over the course of the last seven years of reviewing metal, I’m an H.P. Lovecraft NUT! And any song that pays homage to The Old Ones is golden gravy in my book. And The Innsmouth Look is, not only a great musical representation of Lovecraft’s work, but it’s also the best I’ve ever heard to date (a title once held by Metallica for The Thing That Should Not Be and just about every Morbid Angel song).

The opening to Lucifer had me scratching my head for a few moments as I tried to figure out how Pantera’s Rock The World and Van Halen’s Running With The Devil somehow collided on my iPod, and after the trans-rock mindfuck subsided, I was treated to yet another instant “Mercyful Fate-y” classic (Jesus! I’m namedropping like crazy in this one, ain't I?).

Here is where I would normally start pointing out the stuff in the album that bores/bugs me. Move along, folks. There’s nothing to see here.

It’s not really easy for me to say this since there have been a ton of excellent albums so far this year, but Lucifer Leviathan Logos is at the top of my list for best album of 2013!

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