I try to keep up people, but some labels are just too damn prolific. Such is the case of Singapore’s Pulverised Records who have been putting out extreme metal since the mid 90’s.  Their first release ever was Amon Amarth’s first label backed full-length Sorrow Throughout the Nine Worlds in 1996 and since, this two-man operation has been mining the world in search for more metallic talent. In the span of three months and thanks to the best metal PR agency in the States (that’s Earsplit!), I’ve received two bulky packages with Pulverised's latest releases. Let’s see how they fare… Read on and spread the word!

The first thing that comes to mind regarding Assaulter’s first full-length Salvation Like Destruction is that it sounds like a South American demo from the early 90’s. In all its buzzsaw guitar glory, most of Assaulter's riffs get blurred the fuck out but that does not diminish these Australians’ charm. The drums are ultra sloppy and the vocals way necro in that throaty not yet cookie monster way. And yet, that does not diminish Assaulter’s charm either. On the contrary, Assaulter practice a rather rudimentary ilk of blackened trash metal that sounds all the more effective because of the cheap sounding approach. This nasty Australian two piece counts S. Berserker from Destroyer 666 handling the mike and strings, so you know what kind of filth you are getting into

Seance formed in 1990, released two full-lengths that did not register in all radars (perhaps because they were signed to Black Mark Productions) and split in 1998. Ten years later they are back. Considering its members’ curriculums (from Witchery to Satanic Slaughter) this band could be considered Swedish metal elite. Seasoned, they certainly sound. What strikes the most about Awakening of the Gods is its modern edge. Seance dumps its old 90's approach and breaks in the At The Gates dynamics quite abusively. Their death metal makes great use of certain thrash metal remnants to bolster its quasi melodic death metal punch. Some of the interplay between instruments, made famous by At The Gates and all who followed, is all over this album. The only thing missing is the twin guitar melodies and Lindberg’s red hair.

Of the new batch of fresh Pulverised releases Tribulation’s The Horror has the coolest looking cover artwork by far. The Horror is the first full-length of this Swedish thrashy death metal band but you wouldn’t be able to tell just by listening to it. The guitar tone pays homage to the Sunlight Studios trademark sound, but the playing itself is top notch. Technically, this is way beyond what any first wave Swedish death metal band was able to accomplish during their first couple of albums. Tribulation features Enforcer’s Adam Zaars in the guitars and if you checked out their Into the Night album, you might get an idea of how musically fluent Tribulation are. Except, this is more brutal. Way more brutal. When these fuckers are on, they sweep away everything in their path. The balance achieved between metallic blunt force and angry melodies is outstanding. And again, The Horror is worth owning just to check out the guitar work and the cover artwork.

Guillotine’s Blood Money features the second coolest cover artwork from this new batch of Pulverised releases. It’s an Ed Repka piece featuring a plethora of greedy bastards amongst whom we can see Dubya, Cheney, Mugabe, and old hound looking dude who I assume is Rupert Murdoch, and, surprisingly, Dynasty’s JR and a cigar smoking Michael Clarke Duncan. Or I think. Unfortunately, that's where the praise ends as Guillotine’s thrash metal is sterile as hell. The production lacks grit and punch (the compressed sound makes this sound small) which takes away from some of the dexterous execution. Keyword being ‘some’ because the rest is downright derivative. Maybe that’s the point but still. Guillotine formed in 1995 and Blood Money is their second album since 1997’s Under the Guillotine. This is an improvement, at least in the artwork department.

It almost seems like Pulverised has the monopoly on Swedish metal releases. And it almost seems like musicians in the Swedish scene are way into swinging. Find one Swedish metal band and you’ll find at least half a dozen bands its members have done time in. In the case of heavy thrashers Deceiver, its members have been or are still part of Maze of Torment, Thrown, Flesh and Xenofanes. Anyway, Deceiver was formed in 2004 and are edging themselves to be one of the most prolific bands in the land of Abba. In its short lifetime this Strängnäs trio has released one EP and three full-lengths. Thrashing Heavy Metal is their latest slab of err…thrashing heavy metal and it shows a pretty nice balance between well, thrash metal and classic heavy metal. In other words, Deceiver has the angry edge of thrash metal, with certain moments of thrashy acceleration and a vocalist that frequents a well-pronounced death growl angle and the melodic flares of classically trained metal frontmen. Let’s put it this way, was vocalist / guitarist Pete Flesh hooked on NWOBHM guitars and was he to tone down his gravely vocals Deceiver could have been added to Earache’s Heavy Metal Killers compilation.

Netherbird are the worst of the Pulverised bunch. Matter of fact, this cheesy Swedish black metal band is one of the most horrible sounding bands I’ve had the displeasure of listening to in at least five years. Netherbird represent everything that is horrible about melodic black metal. And they also represent everything that is wrong with flagrantly aping a mediocre band like Cradle of Filth. Netherbird is one of those bands that tries to do too much with their metal. Their music intents to be cinematic so The Ghost Collector is the aural equivalent of an Anne Rice novel. Here you get rain, thunder, violins, chants and all sorts of gothic motifs before the band breaks into one of those CoF’s trademark sounds where a chorus alternates between hilarious shrieks and deep cavernous vocals. I am surprised that Adrian Erlandsson who played drums with At The Gates bangs the skins here. Oh wait, he’s also drummed for Cradle of Filth, so really, I am not so surprised. Warning; this is not for the lactose intolerant.

The question is, how can the same people who signed Netherbird head the opposite way and sign Greece’s Burial Hordes? Burial Hordes is basically the antithesis of Netherbird. One, they don’t suck. And two, they don’t suck at all. Unholy Hordes’ sound is lo fi, sloppy, grimy, morbid and dirty. The guitars have that charming unintentionally fuzzy sound that is so like ‘we couldn’t afford any guitar effects’ and their compositions are so rudimentary and in your face is totally justified to think of certain cold country in the very early 90’s. Burial Hordes play it wise though and know their limitations and what appeals to the black metal masses. Therefore, they own all the qualities of early Scandinavian black metal. Their music is threatening and rough, cheap and fucked. Like the members of most Swedish bands, the creeps from Unholy Hordes have split lots of time in bands like Vomit Church, Enshadowed, Via Serpentis, Hellmight, Respawn the Plague and who knows what others.

Sometimes I think that in underground metal there is no such thing as being green. If there was, then Sweden’s (for a change) Axis Powers are so IT. Nevermind that they’ve been together since 1997 and have one EP, two splits and one full-length on their backs, Marching Towards Destruction (their second album) still sounds like the debut effort of some early Swedish death metal worshipping band. Boringggg!. Not because it is bad. Far form it, if what you are into is the same beaten to death Sunlight Studios sound and you can’t wait for the next Dismember album then you might as well get Marching Towards Destruction. It’s ok. But ok just doesn’t cut it especially when your sound seems to have been trademarked about 3,000 times.