Kaos Reign-Epiphany

Self-Release/Independent
2018

Formed in the winter of 2013 by guitarist/vocalist Bill Klopfer (Murder Castle, Penitentary) and drummer Chris Anderson (Murder Castle), Kaos Reign is a (heavy & harsh) groove metal/modern metal band from Norwalk, Connecticut that has three full-length albums to it's name. Due to drop on April 2nd, 2018, "Epiphany" is the latest (and possibly best to date?) release from this U.S. metal trio that also includes bassist Matt Dugan (Infinition). Starting off with the self-explanatory "Selfish Backstabber", Kaos Reign's new album comes along two years after the release of "Screaming for Salvation". It features twelve tracks in all and has a run-time of  fifty six minutes. At five minutes and twenty six seconds, "Punish Myself" the longest number on "Epiphany". Track number seven ("Under the Knife") is the shortest at 3:54. In addition to modern metal and (Pantera-inspired) groove metal, album number three from these Connecticut metal merchants features elements of  death metal, doom metal, nu-metal, and (primitive) thrash. While there are no bad tracks on "Epiphany" (everything seems nice and square) nothing really jumps out at you either. Does that make the album unworthy of praise? Admittedly, I actually sat and pondered that very question for quite awhile. Ultimately I decided that the answers is "Not really.". If anything, Kaos Reign is good at what they do. It might be compressed and not very colorful, but the metallic "Epiphany" still knows how to slay the proverbial beast. Fans of (underground) modern metal and (edgy) groove metal should find much to like about this twelve track release. So should Kaos Reign's loyal fans. I might have enjoyed a few more guitar solos and/or some wicked bass lines. To that end, a bit more "Pantera groove" would be another one of my recommendations as would raw thrash, but really who am I to judge a trio like this? With three albums to their credit since 2014, Kaos Reign seems to be doing just fine all by themselves...    

Scratch The Floor-Hellhound

Musicarchy Media
2017

Nü-metal/modern metal band Scratch The Floor hails from Tbilisi, Georgia and they have been around since 2012. According to the group's Facebook page the band is lead by vocalist Sid (Tornike Tsorikishvili) and they now have three recordings to their name. The ten-track "Hellhound" serves as the group's first full-length album and it was preceded in life by a self-titled demo and the "Rage EP" recording. From what I have been able to gather these two early releases were home recordings. That goes a long ways toward showing the DIY approach of this hard working outfit. Having endured more than it's fair share of line-up changes and the usual ups an downs that come from playing in a underground metal outfit, Scratch The Floor is remarkably consistent at this point in the game. Above all else those are the two descriptions that I would use to introduce this amped-up band. Hard-working and consistent. Further more, "Hellhound" has the feel of a competent veteran act that has adopted the mentality of "Cut the crap and carry on rocking!". Opening up by way of the excellent "At The Edge", Scratch The Floor's "Hellhound" paints a picture of one up-and-coming band that has trimmed away the fat and is now 100% pure muscle. Even with some of the melodic overtones of this album, "Hellhound" is a (hard as it gets folks!) punch to the face recording that should put this Georgia-based heavy band on the map to stardom! Already a much-loved band in their local scene (and for good reason given the well-honed chops of these riff-mad metal rockers!), Scratch The Floor has an appealing take on modern metal/nü-metal that just screams for a larger audience! Most certainly a song like "Rage" lives up to title and it should be embraced by all metalheads that love it Loud & Proud!! In fact pretty much everything going on between the opening number (the aforementioned "At The Edge") and the album's last cut, "Where It Ends" (see video below for this twisted cool track!), rocks hard and they all rule in their own way. Now, it is true that the phrase "Nü-metal" has left a sour taste on the heavy metal scene over the years. While a lot of the hate is well-deserved (Limp Bizkit anyone?) I'd hate to see people pass over this engaging album without giving it a proper chance. If they did it would be their lose. They would be missing out on what is a really good first album from the guys in Scratch The Floor. Built up over the years by all of the trails and tribulations that Scratch The Floor went through, "Hellhound" is a damn fine listen that gets my stamp of approval. It is available to purchase on sites like iTunes and Amazon.