🔥 THULCANDRA 🔥

“The magic of Thulcandra is that they’re really fucking good. It’s not just nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake.” (Decibel Magazine)

One might argue that the artist’s intent is irrelevant. In Thulcandra’s case, taking the bands’ aesthetic intentions into consideration not only enriches and elevates the experience of the music, it also enhances its value for extreme metal.

When Thulcandra was founded in 2003 by Obscura’s lead guitarist and vocalist Steffen Kummerer and Juergen Zintz, it was done with one intention: To celebrate the music of bands from the golden age of Swedish extreme metal such as Dissection, Sacramentum and Unanimated; songs that comprehend, reinterpret and pay tribute to old-school Swedish blackened death metal and its overall aesthetic. Yet, after the demo “Perishness Around Us” was released in 2004 and preparations for the recording of Thulcandra’s first studio album were already taking place, events took a grim turn. All activities came to an abrupt end when Juergen Zintz tragically committed suicide.

Thulcandra was reborn when Tobias and Sebastian Ludwig (both Wraithcult, Ex-Helfahrt) und session drummer Seraph (Dark Fortress) joined forces with Kummerer in 2009 – and the band’s debut album “Fallen Angel’s Dominion” was finally recorded. With its release in 2010, a merciless winter storm was unleashed upon the masses that can only be described as the an accurate homage to Dissection, including the infamous “blue” Necrolord cover artwork and the grim reaper imagery.
By doing so, Thulcandra was coming “as close as possible to reviving those fallen heroes of old” as angrymetalguy.com put it. Fans and critics agreed, that with “Fallen Angel’s Dominion” the band had “created a mighty powerful and superbly executed melodic black metal album with exceptional songwriting and impressive musicianship. Through the debut, Thulcandra show they understand how to evoke the best moments of Dissection and pay tribute while still tearing your face off.”

The band continued to walk this musical path when releasing the follow-up “Under a Frozen Sun” only one year later. However, the second album shows increased ferocity, more ambitious and mature songwriting, improved musical variety and better balance of melody. But it wouldn’t be until the third album, that the band was going to show what it was truly capable of.

Backed by the expertise of highly-acclaimed musician and producer V. Santura (Woodshed Studios; Triptykon, Dark Fortress, Celtic Frost) and, again, by the visual mastery of the legendary Kristian “Necrolord” Wåhlin, Thulcandra in 2015 released “Ascension Lost”. The album demonstrated the band’s “ability to use their songwriting skills to craft a narrative, and push that narrative to interesting and haunting places,” as Metal Injection puts it – and concludes that “Metalheads who hope to see their beloved style retain both its menacing and ornate qualities should be happy.” Well, they were. And “Ascension Lost” was named one of the best releases of 2015 by critics and magazine throughout Europe and the US.

It was then, that Decibel Magazine respectfully put the band on top of its list of “Top 5 Dissection Clones” by stating: “The magic of Thulcandra is that they’re really fucking good. It’s not just nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake. The Germans are actually writing songs, branched logically off of Storm of the Light’s Bane and predecessor The Somberlain. If Reinkaos wasn’t Dissection’s proper send off, then Thulcandra’s entire discography surely is.”

However, Thulcandra’s discography is not complete just yet. In 2019 the band announced a new album and a refreshed lineup, featuring M.D. (Haradwaith, Soulscape Project), Christian Kratzer (ex Hailstone) and Erebor (Secrets of the Moon, Haradwaith). Get your winter coats out, it might get very cold very soon.
Written by Anja Delastik

www.thetruethulcandra.com

https://www.facebook.com/ThulcandraMetal

https://thulcandra.bandcamp.com/

🔥 HELLRIPPER 🔥

Band Description:
Crowned “Scotland’s King of the arcane mosh” by Metal Hammer magazine, Hellripper aims to invoke the quintessential “black ‘n’ roll” sound, mixing influences from classic 80’s black metal records with a more modern edge. Heavily inspired by witchcraft and the supernatural, Hellripper is also deeply rooted in its Scottish origins, using the landscape and historical events as a backdrop for its lyrics and imagery. Hellripper is fast, loud and uncompromising.
All hail the goat!


Bio:
Hellripper is a one-man black/speed metal band formed by James McBain and based in the Scottish highlands. Formed at the end of 2014 and with the release of the debut EP 'The Manifestation of Evil' at the start of 2015, the band have made their statement clear... Total fucking mayhem!

2015 and 2016 saw the release of an EP and a couple of split EPs to positive reviews in the underground as well as the assembly of a live line-up.

The band's debut album 'Coagulating Darkness' was released in April 2017, resulting in Metal Hammer crowning Hellripper “Scotland's King of the arcane mosh”.

2018 saw the band sign to US-based 'Reaper Metal Productions' - a division of 'Hells Headbangers Records' and the release of a 4-track EP in April 2019.

At the end of 2019, the band signed a deal with 'Peaceville Records' for the release of their second album 'The Affair of the Poisons' in 2020, which again, was also released to great reviews and led to the band's first appearance on the US Billboard Charts.



Website: https://www.hellripper.com/
Bandcamp: https://hellripper.bandcamp.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hellripper1