Back catalogue: Metal

Review: First released almost two decades ago, when it was trailed as a "true metal" tribute, Evil Lives features an impressive array of artists delivering killer covers of songs by the band that arguably started the metal movement, Black Country legends Black Sabbath. Given the quality of bands and solo artists involved, there's plenty to set the pulse racing (and ears ringing), with highlights including a raw, redlined stomp through 'Supernaut' by 100 Homo DJs, Ministry's breathless, riff-powered romp through 'Iron Man', an infectious and predictably anthemic take on metal singalong 'Paranoid' courtesy of Vince Neil and George Lynch, a deliciously psychedelic and relatively slow motion 'Black Sabbath' cover by Iced Earth and a typically atmospheric live recording of 'The Mob Rules' by Carmine and Vinny Appice.

Review: No Future No Past offers the most detailed deep dive yet into the lesser known realms of early Finnish speed and thrash metal. Ranging from 1986-1992, at a time when US acts like Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer were becoming controversial household names, the wave had insidiously swept across Europe and inspired an entirely new generation of long-haired metalheads to enter the fray. Compiled from a myriad of long-lost demo tapes and rare 7" singles from numerous proto-pioneers who never made it past the demo stage, the collection boasts choice cuts from the likes of Damage, Vendetta, Catalepsy and even Sacred Crucifix, who would break up and reform almost three times before their debut album eventually landed in 2004.

Review: The follow up to Newcastle metal icons' stellar debut, Welcome To Hell, is often regarded as one of the quintessential extreme metal contributions, even to this day. Venom would meticulously craft their sophomore effort, with vocalist/bassist Conrad Lent working overtime to mix the tracks, utilising his engineering experience in an attempt to keep costs low while also maintaining full creative control. The end result was Black Metal, a ferocious onslaught of unprecedented technicality, satanic imagery and malevolent atmosphere. It's no small secret that the project is all but directly linked, cited and blamed for the resulting Norwegian black metal genre that would slowly take decrepit shape in the late eighties before plaguing the nineties with as many controversial news articles as it did seminal albums. Even the infamous artwork has become synonymous with the genre as an entity, while the hyper-aggressive, unsettling form of speed-thrash the tracks exude, still stands tall and bold as the intrinsic signifier of the metal scene as a whole, on a deathmarch into uncharted, undiscovered realms of extremity in 1982. Four decades on, this anniversary edition serves as credence to the birth of all modern forms of extreme metal.

Review: Tenth studio album by the Australian progressive metal band Voyager, released via Season Of Mist. Limited to just 300 copies on a blue gatefold double record, the album is the band's most ambitious and diverse work to date, featuring guest appearances from Devin Townsend, Anneke van Giersbergen, and Plini. The album showcases the band's signature blend of melodic hooks, technical riffs, synth-pop elements, and orchestral breakdowns, all overarched by a string of epic and gushing-emotional themes. There's even a sick acid 303/rock fusion track on there, 'Dreamer'.