Album Review: Paradise Lost's Obsidian

We’ve made it to no. 3 fellow Otaku & Metalheads!

Somehow, we’re still here. I don’t known how we’re all standing despite the raping that certain people in power are doing, but we are all here. It’s definitely something.....that’s for sure.

Anyways, 2020 had plenty of great Gothic releases. From re-releases of iconic albums, to new records that continue to bring the vibes of Autumn, gothic romance, and tragedy, it’s obvious that the sub-genre is here to stay despite what the haters say. Two releases in that year were particularly fantastic, and I’m looking at one of them today. The band in question is actually not a stranger around these parts, as I’ve been listening to them for over 12 years at this point in my life, and at the end of this year they’ve been on my blog for a full decade. So, put on your darkest clothes, turn off almost all the lights in the room, and get ready for my review of Paradise Lost’s darkly emotional behemoth Obsidian. Let’s begin.

Background
With Medusa in the rear-view mirror, the band set their sights to the future. In 2017, they celebrated 30 years of being a band together, celebrating with a tour through the UK and Europe, including a gig in their hometown of Halifax, as well as a South & North American tour with Solstafir and The Atlas Moth. On top of that, in the same year they re-released & remastered both Host & Believe In Nothing after changing their opinion on both records some years prior (Read Here). In 2019, an official biography called No Celebration: The Official Story of Paradise Lost was released (With an expanded edition in 2022), and then 2020 rolled around.....

With plans for a tour in shambles due to The Plague covering the whole world, the lone thing that everybody could do was to go into the studio, put their noses to the grindstone, and put out the next album. Announced in March of 2020, Nuclear Blast Records stated that the name of the incoming release was Obsidian, and it would come out on the 15th of May. As lead singer Nick Holmes said:

“One of the most eclectic albums we have done in some time, we have miserable songs, sad songs, slow songs and faster songs. Did I mention miserable?”

Paradise Lost actually weren’t sure IF they were going to release Obsidian in 2020. In a few interviews they stated that because there weren’t any venues open at the time, the album might not be reached by many people. On top of that, Nick Holmes warned people that the music was especially bleak this go around, and that might turn some people off. However, they ultimately came to the decision that it was best that the record should be released, on account of people needing music during the quarantine (Correct me if that wasn’t the case).

Basic Description
A Genuine Soul Crusher & A Return To Their Roots.

Let me get this out of the way immediately: Obsidian is not a happy album. Sure, throughout their career Paradise Lost have crafted some pretty serious records in the Gothic Metal genre (Among others), but there was always.....something on those releases that stood out. Some little sliver of light that always guided the listener through the experience, and come out of the other side. Not so with Obsidian. This output is incredibly hopeless, bleak, and as I said above, genuinely soul crushing. Given the time that this came out it’s not exactly a surprise, but even if it didn’t come out in 2020, it still would be the darkest record of the band’s career. The dark nature of the music on here practically sticks to your body, and stays stuck on for a while after you’re done listening to it. They’re been plenty of darker records I’ve listened to that sent chills through me, but none of them ever affected me like Obsidian did.

However, if you are willing to wade through the bleakness of Obsidian, you’ll find it to be one of the band’s most Gothic releases in nearly a decade at that time. The Plague Within was a wonderful return to their Death-Doom origins, but it didn’t really do anything different when compared to the beginning of their career (Save for the vastly improved recording & production). Medusa, on the other hand, was a fantastic Doom Metal album, but it wasn’t necessarily that much different than anything else in the sub-genre. With Obsidian, you get a full-blown Gothic Metal return, but with some small hints of Death-Doom thrown in to add some variety. It almost felt like whiplash listening to this record for the very first time, and it was probably the same thing that some fans experienced as well. A return to Gothic Metal after nearly a decade was really surprising.....but it was a welcome one.

Best Track
In part 3 of my overview on the band, I originally stated that Hope Dies Young was not just the best track of Obsidian, but was my favorite track as well. I still stand by what I said about it being my favorite song, what with it’s highly Gothic atmosphere that echoes some of their earliest work. However, my opinions have changed to what the best track of the record is, and it has become the album’s opener, Darker Thoughts. It rightfully deserves to open the release, as it shows the listener that Paradise Lost has re-embraced their Gothic Metal roots. Nick Holmes at times still uses a bit of his Death Doom guttural vocals, but brings back his longtime Gothic singing with force. The instrumentation was fantastic, as it sounds very much like a refined track off of Draconian Times, and helped with modern recording & production technology. As one of only 2 singles & music videos released during that time, it had some big shoes to fill, but it easily managed to grab any fan’s attention with ease.

Darker Thoughts

Worst Track
I stated this when I did part 3 of my overview of the band back on Halloween 2020, but Obsidian is the bleakest record that Paradise Lost have ever released to the public (IX from the side project Host comes close in places). Now, even casual fans of the group will tell you that they’ve never been a sunshine & rainbows kind of band, and virtually every single album prior to Obsidian is dark with threads of beauty sewn into it. Somehow, Nick Holmes & the rest of the gang managed to craft a CD that eclipses everything before it in terms of how genuinely bleak & soul-crushing it is. Somehow, Paradise Lost put out a record that sticks with you in all the wrong ways. If you have the lead singer warn you that the album is going to be a soul crusher, then heed their words. If you’re a warm & fuzzy kind of person, then Obsidian is the strongest Kryptonite you’ll ever come across. You gotta be in the right mindset when it comes to listening to Obsidian from beginning to end, and even when it comes to individual tracks you have to have the right mood, though it is easier in that regard.

If I even wanted to have a Dishonorable Mention when it comes to Obsidian, I would have to give that dubious award to the bonus tracks on the Deluxe Edition of the album. Hear The Night & Defiler are actually great tracks, but they completely disrupt the otherwise great flow of the album. This is especially obvious when you consider that both of them play right after Ravenghast, which is a damn fine way to close out an album, as the two songs completely change the record’s pacing. Again, these two tunes are just as good as everything else on the release, but were placed in the most incorrect spot on the album.

Hear The Night

Defiler

One other thing: I sent this to a friend of mine who’s a fan of morally grey/dark media back in 2020, and even he said this was rough to listen to. Considering some of the things he likes, that surprised me!

Other
If you’re curious about listening to this album, click on the link below:

Obsidian

Overall Impression & Rating
Obsidian came out at a time where it’s darkness was enhanced by a once-in-a-century plague had swept the earth, and we were all isolated in order for said plague to not kill us. It’s bleakness is unlike anything that Paradise Lost has ever done in their entire career, but at the same time it marked a return to what got them so popular in the first place. If the band stays within the Gothic Metal lane until their retirement, then they’ll be raking in the cash, and even if they don’t, we got albums like Obsidian to remind us of where they came from.

Obsidian gets an 8.5 out of 10, but it’s dark nature might have listeners take the score down by a point.

And that was my review for Obsidian. Despite the incredibly dark nature of the music, it’s perhaps the best record that the band has done since 2012. With how things are in the world right now, perhaps it’s bleakness matches things better now than it did half a decade ago. However, there wasn’t just one Gothic Metal masterpiece released in 2020, so see you all around the end of the month for a look at that monster. Until then, take care!



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If you’d like to read an interview with Nick Holmes from 2020, then click on the link below:

Paradise Lost Vocalist Nick Holmes on Doom, Dirge, "Obsidian," and Horror (Interview)

Game Review: Doom Eternal

There’s a new Doom game coming fellow Otaku & Metalheads!

That’s right! For anyone that has been living under a gaming rock, we’ve got The Dark Ages coming in May on the 13th, so what better time to take a look at I.D. Software’s beastly release from 2020. Released just in time for the world to be blanketed by a horrific plague, none the less FPS fans still managed to coat our planet Earth in copious amount of demon gore & viscera, and the bodies continue to be piled up to this day! Before we take a look at the origins of the Slayer, let’s take a look at his return to Earth. So sit back, grab your shotgun, and take a look at my review for Doom: Eternal. Let’s begin!

Story
Taken from Wikipedia:

“In 2163, fourteen years after the events on Mars, Earth has been overrun by demons, wiping out 60% of the planet's population. The Union Aerospace Corporation (UAC) has been fully corrupted into a demonic cult. What remains of humanity has either fled Earth or joined the Armored Response Coalition (ARC) resistance movement. The Doom Slayer, having previously been betrayed by Dr. Samuel Hayden, returns with a satellite fortress controlled by the AI VEGA to quell the demonic invasion by killing the Hell Priests: Deags Nilox, Ranak, and Grav. The priests serve an angelic being known as the Khan Maykr, who seeks to sacrifice mankind for her own race's survival. The Slayer teleports to Earth and kills Deag Nilox, but the Khan Maykr transports the two remaining priests to unknown locations.”

That is just one part on Wikipedia, and without giving things away, there is far more going on in this game than one realizes. Because of all of the various pieces of lore, it establishes that the universe of Doom is far deeper than it’s ever been, and further builds upon what began in 2016. John Carmack said back in the day that story in a shooter is like story in a porn: yeah it’s there, but you’re not experiencing the medium for it. In many old school shooters, and some of the modern day Boomer Shooters that’s definitely true, but somehow giving Doom a deeper world than what the bare bones nature of his time in the 90s (With maybe the exception of Doom 64). Speaking of a deeper world......

Setting
A huge plus in Eternal’s favor would be it’s various locales. Doom 2016 for all of it’s badassery,  tended to repeat a lot of areas across the entire game, almost making it feel bizarrely like Serious Sam in that regard. Not so with 2020's out, as there are so many more places to explore & fight in. You’ve got your base of operations known as the Fortress of Doom (More on that in a bit), and you do go back to Earth and Hell a couple times, but there are also numerous other alien worlds that have the stench of demons and the Makyrs all over them, and you even go back to Mars in one level. There is so much more variety in terms of how the levels look, what with the enhanced graphics from Eternal’s usage of ID Tech 7, not to mention the increased amount of detail because of the graphics engine used. Because of that, all of the places you visit makes the whole experience come across like Serious Sam 2 weirdly enough.

Characters
One advantage that Doom: Eternal has over it’s predecessor would be the expanded cast of characters, but only just expanded. The game still is centered fully on the Doom Slayer, and in his second outing he’s more expressive. His eyes show every emotion & feeling he’s experiencing, and his physical movements in the cutscenes give the impression that he is a behemoth on the battlefield, but the few quieter parts shows that he is capable of listening & thinking. Outside of the Slayer, the only character from the prior game to make an appearance is Dr. Samuel Hayden, but his role isn’t quiet as significant as it was in 2016. Our antagonists is of course Hell and the 3 main Hell Priests, and in a curious turn, the Khan Makyr of Urdak (The Doom Universe’s equivalent of Heaven). Both characters Samuel & the Khan Makyr have a few surprises, but no spoilers! Outside of the tiny main cast, there’s a few NPCs that we encounter, but have practically no time to get to know them.

Gameplay
For the most part, Eternal’s base gameplay isn’t that much different than what was established in 2016; run, gun, rip & tear, look for secrets & collectables, etc. The Doom Slayer’s second outing at it’s most basic doesn’t try to differentiate what made ID’s return so great last decade.....but there’s also so much more going on here!

For starters, there is the Fortress Of Doom. The base & home of the Slayers, you can find all sorts of things here. From ARC recordings, to unlockables for your suit & equipment, weapons, alternate skins, weapons & art galleries, and even access to all of the music you find in various secrets throughout the game. On top of that, there the Ripatorium (Demon Prison) where you can practice killing hellspawn to your heart’s content, and in your personal room there’s even a computer that let you play a full copy of Doom 2! All of this just adds more flavor to Doomguy’s character, and helps build the world of Eternal in a surprising amount of ways.

Next up are the levels. Compared to what we had in 2016, the levels of Eternal are larger, more complex in design (The later levels especially), and more involved when it comes to interactivity. On top of that, the secrets are placed a bit better, and it takes a little more thinking to find some of them. Without saying too much, there’s one secret towards the end of the game that requires some pretty good timing & being good at spotting things out of the ordinary. Perhaps the best thing about each & every one of the levels you play through also helps tell the story in addition to the lore you find. It’s subtle, but each one shows off how bleak & dire the world of Eternal is, yet also shows the sense of wonder the more fantastical locales are. Definitely a plus!

Next improvement over 2016 would be it’s combat. Now, Doom 2016's combat was good. Damn good, in fact! It felt refreshing at the time when compared to most of the Modern Military titles at the time: you ran around at 90 miles an hour, ripping & tearing every living demon like a crazy person. Within Eternal, you still run around like a loon, but now there is more rhythm & flow when you compare it to 2016. Many of the enemies have weak points on their body that, if destroyed, disable a specific attack they use. On top of that, there is a boss or two that you can only attack at just the right time. Sure, those moments are telegraphed, but you do see them coming. This also applies to one VERY specific boss that becomes an enemy half-way through, but not spoilers for anyone that’s reading this for the first time!

If there’s anything negative about Eternal’s gameplay, and even then it’s only for those that aren’t a fan of it, it would be the increased platforming & jumping, along with the Extra Life system. When Doom came back in 2016, you were definitely jumping around & grabbing ledges (Especially once you got the Jump Boots), but Eternal turns the knob up to 11 in that aspect. There are parts in every level where you’ve got platforming of some kind, and it’s incredibly frustrating in the first level where you don’t even have the ability to dash yet! Once you got the ability to dash things let up a little, but even then it’s insane at how much is there! The Extra Life system isn’t as bad as I’m making it sound, as they’re fairly plentiful, and you can build up enough of a supply that dying a bunch of times isn’t painful. Trouble does crop up in the DLCs when it comes to the extra lives, as they’re spread out a bit more thinly, and because of that you gotta be a bit more careful when it comes to dying. The more console-ification of Eternal definitely did rub some players the wrong way (Definitely rubbed my Dad the wrong way), but it not really bad once you understand the flow of everything.

Graphics & Sound
ID Software hit it out of the park with ID Tech 6, and they did it again with no. 7. Things looks a little smoother, environments are more varied, there’s a wider usage of color, and all of the enemies & NPCs move more fluidly than in Doom 2016 (Even though they moved nicely in that game). Everywhere you go to is so much more striking than what was in 2016, to the point where it feels like the transition from Serious Sam to Serious Sam 2. Soundwise things are still fantastic! Your guns still sound like beasts, the demons sound more monstrous than before, and the soundtrack by Mick Gordon is even more metal than ever! Definitely a step up from the year prior.....even though the graphics & sound in 2016 were pretty sweet in it’s own right.

Overall & Rating
Doom: Eternal was a meteor that came crashing down in 2020. More visceral combat & gameplay, more locales, more story, and even more characters all came together, and the end result was a sword that can pierce the heavens! Maybe the more console elements did ruin the experience for some, but to me they added some extra spice to what was already a tasty dish when Doom came back in 2016. I’ve played through this game a few times, and each time it was nothing short of fantastic. If you’ve got the time before the new game comes out, give Eternal one last go through before the new game comes out. You won’t regret it!

Doom: Eternal gets a 10 out of 10.

And that was my review for Doom: Eternal. It was fun to look at this colossus of a game again, especially with The Dark Ages coming in May, and it still holds up half a decade later! So everyone, I will see you all in the middle of this month, when I’ll be reviewing the darkest Paradise Lost album that was ever recorded. Until then, take care!


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If you’d like to see a walkthrough of the game, click on the link below:

Doom Eternal 100% Longplay Walkthrough (Nightmare, No Commentary)

Album Review: Turmion Kätilöt's Global Warning

Facebook didn't accept the original album cover. Boo Hoo.

We’re still in Finland fellow Otaku & Metalheads!

To be honest, I’m not surprised at how consistent the quality of so many bands from this part of the world is. From top acts, to more niche favorites, this frosty nation always hits the mark! Same with the subject of today’s review, and given the name of the band in question, they’re also no strangers to this little part of the internet. For a little over 20 years, Turmion Kätilöt has been hitting the European concert scene pretty hard, and they know how to make a splash! Even in a plague ridden year like 2020, they still managed to release a monster record. So, sit back, relax, and enjoy my review for Global Warning. Let’s begin!

Background
Upon it’s release in 2018, Universal Satan was the proving ground for new band member Shag-U, who replaced longtime member Spellgoth after he left the year prior. After settling in rather nicely with everybody else, the band entered the studio in 2019 to record their ninth studio album, which would be titled Global Warning. It’s kind or ironic the record would be called that, as it would be released on April the 17th in 2020 of all times. There was a single bright spot in all of this: Turmion Kätilöt would be signed to Nuclear Blast Records, which for the first time ever gave them a fanbase that was massively bigger than what came before, and a presence within the United States.

Basic Description
Disco Metal.

Okay, so Global Warning, and everything else Turmion Kätilöt has done before & after this release, isn’t Disco Metal in the traditional sense. Everything they’ve released is full blown Industrial Metal, with equal part metallic instrumentation & industrial sounds and effects, but the “Disco Metal” label is more of a spiritual identity. Global Warning is the kind of album you play in a dance club, it energizes people, and it’s either make people headbang, dance, or a mix of the two. Hell, you could even play this record in a rave bar or other musical venue, and you might get a similar reaction!

Best Track
Sano Kun Riittää, or Say Enough translated from Finnish, is a bit of a creeper at first. There’s soft vocal work, gentle-ish guitar, & xylophone playing at the beginning, and it’s actually pretty eerie. Once the intro is passed, it goes straight into the metal & louder singing, and it hits like a giant freight truck. Even during the harder parts, it never loses the horror-like atmosphere that was created in the opening. It’s definitely a highlight of Global Warning, and a tune you shouldn’t skip!

Sano Kun Riittää (Say Enough)

Worst Track
Really Global Warning’s own fault lies with the language barrier. Outside of some rare exceptions, Turmion Kätilöt have sung completely in Finnish. Unless you know the language really well (Or know where to find lyric translations), you’re likely not going to connect with it as much as someone from Finland, or Europe by extension. With the band now under the Nuclear Blast label for a few years now, their name has more recognition than it once did, and maybe things might change.

Other
If you’re curious about listening to this album, then click on the link below:

Global Warning

One quick note: I found it ironic that back in 2020, the band released an album called Global Warning. Given what 2025 has been like so far here in the United States & the rest of the world, perhaps it should have been saved for this year instead!

Overall Impression & Rating
Global Warning continues to show that Turmion Kätilöt are an Industrial Metal force of nature, a well as a prime example of how fantastic Heavy Metal from Finland can be. Sure, the Finnish language can be daunting for some, but even if you can’t get past it, you’ve got the instrumentation & vocal work to carry you from the beginning to the end.....and it’s some damn fine instrumentation & vocals, btw.

Global Warning gets an 8.5 out of 10.

And that was my look at Global Warning, and the conclusion of my look at the no. 4 albums of 2020. Despite the language barrier that’s in place, it’s still relatable to any metalhead through instrumentation alone. With that, we’re now onto part 3, and things are going to get a little Goth. See you all in March!

Convention Review: Katsucon 2025

Katsucon 2025 is in the books fellow Otaku & Metalheads!

This year’s convention was pretty significant. Mainly, it was the 30th Katsucon ever, and I didn’t even know about it! I’ve only been coming to the Gaylord since 2020 ironically enough, but in that half-decade the trip from Upstate New York to Maryland is a pilgrimage I gladly take with the friends I go with. Due to the death of a local con I went to for a decade a few years back, this behemoth of a celebration of all things anime & stuff starts the year of just right for me. Did the 30th anniversary of one of the east coast’s biggest conventions kick ass & take name!? Well, sit down, relax, and enjoy my review for Katsucon 2025! Let’s begin!

Good Points
First off, seeing the Gaylord always brings a smile to my face. From having my mind blown all the way back in 2020 upon my first visit, and to now, it always manages to make my eyes widen in awe. On the outside of the building it comes across like a giant fortress, but inside it feels like a completely different world. For anyone who’s never gone, it almost feels like a microcosm of the outside, as there are various little shops that provide a lot of what you need while you’re staying there (Including a FedEX if you can believe it). In the mornings where the sunlight comes in through the windows, it feels like rays of weeby heaven touching your face. At night, it almost feels like a faerie wonderland, as many of the trees in the hotel have lights strewn in them, and they light up when it’s completely dark outside. It really is something to see for first-timers, but for anyone that’s gone for at least 5 years, it’s a beautiful treat.

The cosplay was always a plus for Katsucon, but 2025's display of wearable artistry was particularly on point this year! Low-end cosplay crafted with love, to mid-tier outfits that show off improving talent, to high end pieces of pure art, all levels were on display constantly! I won’t talk too much more, but here’s a tiny sample of what was around this year. Enjoy!

Dealers Room & Artist’s Alley as usual are filled to the brim with so much to look at & buy! Despite one HUGE hiccup with where the artist’s were (Oh boy, I’ll get to that in a bit!), each area was stocked with a variety of merchants & peddlers that had a lot of goods. I was able to purchase a lot of things, including a con shirt (Something that didn’t happen last year, so a mini good point.)! Hell, I even bought a little more from the artists this year when compared to prior outings (Given what happened this year, it felt right, but again.....I’ll get to that in a bit.), and I have no doubt I’ll probably do it again next year.

Panels & events are always fun and varied at Katsucon, and this year was no different. From the AMV contests, to the idol show, there was always something to go to & experience. Though I didn’t go to a lot of panels, the ones I did go in and see were a treat! The Phoenix Wright panel, for example, showed off how wildly inaccurate the laws works in the game when compared to the real world. Meanwhile in the 18+ portion of the programming, the Monster Fuckers panel (I’m not censoring it because the name is funny) was hysterical! Despite a technical hiccup that prevented the panelists from using their computer, everything was a delightful storm of hilarity & horniness. Props to them for carrying on with the show, and I hope they come back next year!

The drive this year was surprisingly pleasant! Normally it takes us a fairly long amount of time to drive down from Upstate New York (Albany to be specific), but this year it took about a good 6 to 7 hours to drive to the Gaylord. Hell, even coming back up was a similar length of time, and the weather was crap throughout Sunday.....except in Maryland where it was just raining & in the low 60s. Pretty weird if you ask me.

Finally, I gotta talk about the pre-reg line this year. I don’t know what the hell was going on: make there was an absolute horde of VIP orders this year, or people were just being super cooperative with the staff, but there was almost next to no line at all when I was there. There were a small number of people, but once they got through, I was up next, and I got out pretty quick as well. Hope things are like this next year!

Okay Points
I put this in the “Bad Points” section of last year’s review, but the transition from cash to card (Credit//Debit & Gift) made my blood boil, since as far as I know they didn’t announce it beforehand. This time around it was still annoying, but the machine that gave out the cards to be used was working on Day 1 instead of being busted for I think Thursday & part of Friday last year. On that factor alone, it moves up to here.

Bad Points
Okay, where to begin!

Let’s start off with a relatively simple one, and that’s the restricting traffic flow around the Gazeebo. I don’t know who’s idea it was to post barricades around it, but that just made going through that area much more restrictive. Sure, it a damn good place for cosplay photoshoots, but even then did ya really need to section off parts of that area. Yeah, I could get through still, but it made so much traffic in that spot, it almost made me considering going down a floor then up a few times!

Next up, I gotta talk about the pipe. Contrary to what a lot of people have memed (Funny as they are), it was a water pipe from the hotel’s kitchen that had grey water, not a sewage pipe with crap in it. It happened to burst in the Artist’s Alley, and while there wasn’t a massive amount of damage, there was enough damage to some of the artist’s tables that the whole alley had to close for the rest of Friday, and open late on Saturday. Now, that’s pretty bad in it’s own right, but apparently people have been telling the hotel for ages that there were issues with the pipes, and the hotel either doesn’t listen or doesn’t care. Give the Katsucon staff credit in this regard: they acted decisively & quickly once the pipe burst, and I hope that whoever was affected got their money back. 

Burst pipe rains on KatsuCon attendees and displays at Gaylord National Harbor (WJLA)

Finally, there was the VIP issue. Normally I’d talk about it in full, but here’s a post from the 21+ page (Courtesy of poster Kelvin Bracero) that explains it better than me:

“At the Q&A with the chairs of Katsucon asked about the situation with VIPs. The website STILL CURRENTLY says “front of line privileges” but all we had that for was live events and merchants/dealers. Apparently they were going to send a letter out AFTER you already bought your ticket. But they dropped the ball and didn’t send any out. They emailed last minute on the Thursday of the con.....but the are choosing to follow their policies and not offer any refunds after January.....even though they told us about this change as the con was starting.....this is legitimately false advertising. Paying $100 extra each ticket with my group and then taking away the main perk last minute.”

Convinces me to never sign up for VIP if you ask me.

Final Thoughts & Rating
Katsucon 2025 was fun for me. Warts & all, I enjoyed my time at the Gaylord & interacting with the horde of convention goers. It’s become my go-to convention to start the year off, and with things being the way they are politically here in the United States right now, we all need a slice of heaven in a sea of hell. Hopefully by next year, we can all laugh just a little bit louder. Regardless, I think most of us had a damn good time, and I look forward to what we got in 2026.

Katsucon 2025 gets an 8 to 8.5 out of 10. Artists that got affected by the pipe burst will probably rate their experience 1 to 2 points lower.

And that was my review for Katsucon 2025. With it being 30 years old in 2025, I hope it gets to 60 in 2055, and newer generations will appreciate the maelstrom of insanity that is the Gaylord by then. So, with that out of the way, I got my last no. 4 album review of 2020 coming in soon, and after that, it’s onto no. 3. See you soon!



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If you’d like to read my review of last year’s Katsucon, click on the link below:

Katsucon 2024

Album Review: Lordi's Killection (A Fictional Compilation)

My early look at the number 4 albums of 2020 begins here fellow Otaku & Metalheads!

We’ve got ourselves a fun one everybody! Hailing from the metallic wonderland known as Finland, and they’ve actually managed to crawl their way into one of my lists before 2020 just 2 years prior. Longtime readers might known who I’m talking about, but for those who are fairly knew, I’m speaking of the B-movie monsters known as Lordi! Since the early 2000s, these devotees to all things KISS, Heavy Metal, and Hokey Horror have crafted records that are equal parts fun & frightening! Lordi’s outing in the beginning of this decade is no exception, but it might also be their most unique. So, sit down in from of the radio, turn on the nostalgia, and enjoy my review for Killection. Let’s begin!

Background
Taken from Wikipedia:

“On 27 September 2019, Lordi announced the title of their tenth album Killection. It was released on 31 January 2020, followed by a European tour titled "Killectour" in support of the album the same year. The band has said that this album is considered a 'fictional compilation' album and would contain songs you would normally hear in the early 1970s to mid-1990s. Their single from the album "Shake the Baby Silent", was released on 8 November 2019. Their second single off the album, "I Dug a Hole in the Yard for You", was released on 29 November 2019 along with a music video. The third single off the album, "Like a Bee to the Honey", was released on 17 January 2020.

It is the first album to feature Hiisi on bass guitar, following the departure of longtime member OX.”

Basic Description
A musical buffet.

There have been plenty of albums I’ve listened to over the years where I’ve said something along the lines of “Something For Everyone”, but Killection marks the first time that sentiment feels genuine! You’ve got mid-90s Rob Zombie-esque Industrial (More on that in a moment), early 90s Thrash Metal, 80s Pop-like tunes, and all the way to Disco & 70s Rock. There really is a surprising variety of musical styles on here, so if there something you don’t like, there is always something you will enjoy just around the corner. Coupled with the story that Lordi is telling in between the music (More on that below), and Killection is a really neat experience that you should listen to at least once!

Best Track
Shake The Baby Silent from the first moment I heard it made me become an instant fan. This was the mid-90s Industrial I mentioned above, and the Rob Zombie influences are apparent from the opening second. You got the weird sound effects, the groove-like instrumentation & keyboard, the nonsensical lyrics that non the less paint a picture you just can’t look away from, and the gruff vocal work from a being that sounds like some warlock alone in his lair. It might not have been the strongest song to begin previewing Killection, but it was the right song.

Shake The Baby Silent

The other aspect that I thought was a plus in Killection’s favor was the story. Peppered all throughout the album are segments from the in-universe radio station SGC, and as you’re listening to the record, you’re basically hearing the music that the radio DJ named Rockin Ruiz is playing for the listeners. Not only that, but he takes calls from some rather quirky people, and by the very end claims he has a record that’ll open up the gates of hell if it’s played.....but no spoilers!

Worst Track
Even though it says “A Fictional Compilation” on the front cover, Killection shares the exact same problem I have with almost every other compilation I’ve ever listened to. Mainly, the fact that the songs aren’t in chronological order. Even with the surprisingly structured story I talked about earlier, the music is seemingly thrown around haphazardly! I’m giving a little bit of slack though, as I think it was done this way because of the story they were telling. Still, it’s really annoying that things weren’t put into chronological order, as we could have a clearer picture of the band the record’s story was trying to convey.

Other
If you’re curious about listening to this album, then click on the link below:

Killection (A Fictional Compilation)

Overall Impression & Rating
Killection is an embodiment of what a Fun album should be, and despite the annoying placement of the songs, it manages to be catchy to me still after all this time. Though I didn’t mention it above, I should briefly mention that this release did manage to inspire one of Lordi’s biggest project’s in their entire career....but that’ll have to be for another time. Regardless, this mish-mash of musical styles was a treat from start to finish, and you would have to be a lunatic to not enjoy this album!

Killection gets a 9 out of 10.

And that was my look at Killection. Wonky song order not withstanding, it managed to be an entertaining release for me in a year that kept me cooped up in my home for the massive majority of 2020. However, we didn’t have just monsters come out of Finland that year. A band that is all too familiar from the land of snow & salted licorice made a statement that year as well, so see you all towards the end of the month for a look at Turmion Katilot, but beforehand I’ll have my review for Katsucon 2025 up for you. Until then, take care!

Metal Overview: Slaughter

Been a while since I did a smaller Metal Overview fellow Otaku & Metalheads!

As much fun as it is to cover a band with a giant library of music, sometimes it’s nice to look at a group that has a more humble output, and the band I’ve chosen is a strange one for some. Coming in at a time where their style of metal was just about out the door, these Las Vegas boys none the less held fast to what they wanted to play, and managed to achieve a surprising amount of success. I rediscovered them in recent memory, and it seemed only right that I chose this group to be the first covered on Metal Overview for 2025. So, without further delay, here’s my look at the 1990s Hard Rock/Glam Metal band Slaughter. Let’s begin!

Stick It To Ya (1990)

The year was 1990. Heavy Metal, while still popular, would get taken out of the spotlight a year or two later by the musical colossus known as Grunge, but Hair Metal was almost out of the public consciousness as soon as the new decade came in, outside of a few small holdouts that some people had a slim interest in still. Enter the band Slaughter: formed in late 1988, lead vocalist Mark Slaughter and bassist Dana Strum were previously in ex-Kiss member Vinnie Vincent’s group, the Vinnie Vincent Invasion. After Chrysalis Records took the $4 million contract away from Vincent for exceeding his credit line with the label, it was then transferred over to Slaughter and Strum (Who were former band members, btw), and in 1989 the two would complete the lineup with lead guitarist Tim Kelly and drummer Blas Elias. After the formation was finished, the band would enter the studio from May to June of 1989, and on the 23rd of January in 1990, their first record Stick It To Ya was released.
                    
Commercially, Stick It To Ya did a surprisingly good job in the music charts! It wound up selling over 2 million copies in 1990, becoming one of the biggest selling records of that year. It would also chart at no. 18 on the Billboard 200, and by the end of 1990 it would go to no. 23. On top of that, Stick It To Ya would produce 3 singles (Up All Night, Fly To The Angels, Spend My Life), and have music videos for the previously mentioned singles. Pretty impressive if you ask me!

Best Track? Even if you never listened to this album, or even this band to be honest, I have a sneaking suspicion that some of you may have hear Fly To The Angels on the radio at one time. An incredibly soulful & blues influenced track, it becomes all the more sorrowful once you find out the inspiration for it. As Mark Slaughter said in an interview in 2017:

“That song was written about a girlfriend who I went to high school with. I remember I came back from touring and couldn’t get a hold of her. So I asked a friend and he told me he hadn’t seen her. The next thing I know, he calls me back with the news that she had passed away and the funeral was the next day. It was one of those surreal moments. I went to her funeral and it inspired me to write a song about letting go. There’s a real sense of composure in going through those life events that I’m always very conscious of in my music. Seeing what it does for other people is why I continue to write.”

Fly To The Angels

Worst Track? To be perfectly honest, Stick It To Ya doesn’t have a single bad track on it! From top to bottom it’s a hell of a good time, and thankfully there are plenty of people who still remember it. Really it’s own fault is the timing of it’s release: like I said earlier, once it hit 1990, Glam Metal was largely ignored by music listeners outside of some holdouts. To be honestly, it was beginning to leave the musical zeitgeist towards the end of the 1980s.....but that’s a story for another time.

Stick It To Ya. A shockingly good start for a band who’s style wasn’t the juggernaut it used to be, it would establish the band as one of the best of the decade. If by any chance this record interests you, the please listen whenever you can. Next album!

The Wild Life (1992)

Stick It To Ya ended up being a surprising success for Slaughter. Despite Glam Metal almost being out the door as the 90s continued onward, the band’s first release proved that even though it wasn’t massively popular anymore, people still liked that style of music. Because of that love from the fans, not to mention the boost of energy they got from said fans, the band went into the studio in 1991 to record their second album, and on the 21st of April a year later, The Wild Life was released. Ironically, it would chart higher than Stick It To Ya from 2 years prior. Number 8 on the Billboard 200 to be exact, and it would get enough sales to the point where it would be certified Gold. Funny enough, the album didn’t produce any singles that got into the Top 40 Hits on the US Hot 100, though one song did get to the no. 69 spot if you can believe it.

Best Track? Real Love (The song that got to no. 69, btw) harkens back to the Glam Metal height of the 1980s, and it isn’t ashamed of that at all! If anything, it almost feels like the band’s take on the Whitesnake classic Still Of The Night: the instrumentation evokes feelings of sensual love that’s equal parts real & forbidden, and Mark Slaughter’s vocal work just grabs you from the moment he starts singing. The run time is shorter than Still Of The Night, and because of that you’ll have to listen a few time for it to stick.....but when it’s this good, it’s not an issue in any way!

Real Love

Worst Track? Kinda like Stick It To Ya, The Wild Life’s only real fault is timing. It came out at a time where Glam Metal wasn’t really in vogue anymore, only this time it came out a few months after the musical colossus known as Nevermind, and was practically shoved into the closet. It does explain why (at least in my opinion) there’s a hint of Grunge here and there on the album. Not enough to push it away from Hard Rock & Glam Metal in any way, but noticeable enough if you manage to catch it.

The Wild Life. Simultaneously it own thing while possibly adding something new to the mix, it manage to come out stronger than it’s predecessor despite Glam Metal not really being a thing anymore. If Stick It To Ya didn’t work out for you, then perhaps this release will. Next album!

Fear No Evil (1995)

Things were rough for Slaughter after The Wild Life came out. Prior to the recording of their 3rd album, lead singer Mark Slaughter was recovering from nodule surgery on his vocal cords, Tim Kelly was arrested for charges of drug trafficking in 1993, and bassist Dana Strum was rehabilitating from a motorcycle accident that injured his playing hand around the same time. Because of this, recording on the new record was rough, though the songs were completely written during that time. Even then there was still some trouble, as Chrysalis Records was absorbed into EMI Records, and EMI would drop the band from their label not long after that. Luckily, Slaughter got a deal with CMC International, which was a relatively new record label at the time. Once they secured a new deal, and launched a contest to determine the new album’s name, they got back into the studio from 1993 to 1994, and on the 2nd of May in 1995, Fear No Evil was released.

Fear No Evil would go on to be one of the worst charting releases of Slaughter’s career, making it to no. 182 on the Billboard 200. It would go on to sell around 500,000 copies, have a video make for the track Searching, and the band did manage to promote this CD with a North America tour, as well as selling surprisingly well in Japan if you can believe it. Definitely not as impressive as what came before, that’s for sure.

Best Track? Breakdown N' Cry is one of the biggest examples of full-blown Blues Metal I’ve ever listened to! Though it leans more in the Blues sides of things, there’s still some metallic undertones when it comes to the instrumentation (Especially around the end) & the vibes it was trying to create. This isn’t a fast song either, as it goes by nice & slow for just over 6 minutes. Just as the Blues should go by.

Breakdown N' Cry

Worst Track? Really the only bad thing that’s going against Fear No Evil is the startling lack of Glam Metal elements in the music. There’s still some traces of it in a few tracks, but for the most part it’s nowhere to be heard. To play devil’s advocate, it was the mid-90s by this point, and Hair Metal was pretty much non-existent at this point, but it seems as if Slaughter was doing everything they could to go along with the times. This musical shift would continue over the rest of this decade, for the better.....but maybe for the worst.

Fear No Evil. Not as good as the band’s prior 2 records, but it still manages to be entertaining all the same. I don’t recommend it as strongly as I do Stick It To Ya & The Wild Life, but it’s still nice to listen all the same. Now before I go on, I will say that information on the next 2 releases will be sparse. My primary source of information on bands (Metal & Otherwise) doesn’t have as much info on what’s to come, so I hope that’s okay. Next album!

Revolution (1997)

By the time that the tour for Fear No Evil was coming to an end, Tim Kelly’s legal trouble from the drug trafficking charges a few years prior ended. After that situation ended, and everybody was back on the same page, Slaughter went back into the studio to record their 4th album, and on the 20th of May in 1997, Revolution was released. The record.....did not do so good. In fact, it didn’t even make it onto the billboard 200. There weren’t any music videos as far as I know, but I think there might have been a tour for it.

Best Track? Hard To Say Goodbye mark the only track in my opinion that kept it’s Glam Metal past mostly intact. The more modern recording & production quality along with the Grunge vibes keep this from sounding like something you’d hear in the 80s, yet there’s still plenty of nostalgia from the prior decade coming in hard that you really can’t avoid it at all. To a certain extent, It almost sounds & feels like Old LA Tonight from Ozzy Osbourne’s Ozzmosis from 2 years prior, what with the feelings of nostalgia and looking at the past. It may be cheese in some respects, but it’s that cheese factor that makes me smile so much.

Hard To Say Goodbye

Worst Track? Like Fear No Evil, Revolution’s only real fault is the lack of Glam Metal elements. It’s more apparent on this issue, as the music went much more down the eclectic and psychedelic road I talked about earlier. You can still get a trace of Glam here & there, but you gotta pay really close attention in order to find it. However, I still find the shift to be pleasant on the ears, and is still a nice change. However, it’s a shame that it came at the cost of their prior identity.

Revolution. Though the abandoning of their Glam Metal roots is sad, the potential for Slaughter to be a great eclectic and psychedelic band is definitely there. If you like your music to be a little weird at times, then definitely give this record a try. Unfortunately, not only did the album not chart, but by 1998, tragedy would strike. Next album.

Back To Reality (1999)

Like I said a moment ago, by the time it reached 1998, tragedy would strike Slaughter. On the 5th of February in that year, longtime band member Tim Kelly would pass away in Arizona due to a car accident. His passing hit the band pretty hard, but none the less they trudged on, as they didn’t want to be stuck because of grief. Dave Marshall would briefly perform with them while they were in Japan, but Tim’s full-time replacement came in the form of Jeff Blando. His prior groups were Left For Dead and Saigon Kick, so he definitely has some credit to his name. Once they got their replacement, they went right into the studio, and on the 29th of June in 1999, their final album Back To Reality was release. Like Revolution, it failed to chart on the Billboard 200, and there weren’t any music videos or touring as far as I know.

Best Track? Kinda gotta give to the tracks Love Is Forever & Dangerous. Both tunes come across as incredibly nostalgic, as while there aren’t any Glam Metal elements to be heard, the vibes & the energy of these two songs most certainly conjure the Glam scene of the 1980s to early 90s. There’s even some cheese factor from that time as well, and yet it’s not overwhelming either. Please don’t skip these two when you hear them!

Love Is Forever

Dangerous

However, I gotta give some very high Honorable Mentions to Silence Of Ba. From the moment I first heard this, it almost came across like a Devin Townsend instrumental. Maybe not in terms of instrumentation (Even though the instruments sounded similar to what HevyDevy would do in the 90s), but the vibes come across like that of something that the Mad Canadian would unleash upon one’s ears. Definitely a pleasant surprise!

Silence Of Ba

Worst Track? To be honest, at this point in Slaughter’s career they’ve all but abandoned their Glam Metal origins, and seemingly embraced a late 90s Hard Rock shell that’s got some eclectic & psychedelic spots painted on it. You might, and I do mean MIGHT, get a minuscule sliver of Glam in some rare moments, but by 1999 the band was done with what got them so popular in the first place. To play devil’s advocate again, it was 1999, and by this point nobody was asking for the subgenre anymore except in cases where they wanted to experience a flood of nostalgia. Even so, you almost feel like you gotta do a double take when you listen to this record for the first time, as fans from the beginning of the decade might not believe what they’re hearing at first.

Back To Reality. The furthest away from 1990, yet the quality from prior releases is still very much accounted for. If you were a longtime fan that was disillusioned by Glam Metal in the 90s, or you’re a fan of 90s Rock, then this is the album for you!

And that was my look at Slaughter. Perhaps a bit too late to the 80s Glam Metal party, but none the less they managed to hold onto a little of that time’s musical magic. Even if they never produce a new album, the ones they did are wonderful in their own right. So with that, February continues onward, and in a few weeks I’ll have my review for Katsucon 2025. Until then, take care!



***
If you’re curious about listening to these albums, click on the links below:

Stick It To Ya (w Bonus Tracks)

The Wild Life (w Bonus Tracks)

Fear No Evil

Revolution

Back To Reality

Also, if you would like a documentary on the band, check out the link below:

Slaughter - The Wild Life (Documentary 1991)

MTG Set Review: Theros Beyond Death

Happy 1st of February fellow Otaku & Metalheads?

So, uh, the rest of last month was a bit of a shitshow. Already, the beginning of the 2nd Trump administration bent the United States over the table & started molesting it, but at least nothing blew up, so I’ll take what we can get. In the meantime, we’re now at the number 4 spot of my albums from 2020, but that’s not all I have in store for this month! I’ve got a few extra goodies I’m releasing, and today’s is something I alluded to on the 1st of January. MTG was pretty big in 2020, and the first output was pretty big. It was a return to a fairly recent plane we all went to, but one that was going through some pretty massive turmoil. Old characters came back, new ones emerged, and plans were set into motion that would affect the plane a few years later. So, craft that gold mask, escape the underworld, and get a look at my review for Theros Beyond Death. Let’s begin!

Story & Setting
Taken from the MTG Wiki:

“There is no ebook for Theros Beyond Death, nor were there weekly updates for Magic Story. It was revealed that the blowback from War of the Spark: Forsaken caused the Theros Beyond Death fiction to be delayed. The Franchise Team tried to find the correct time and channel to release it at a later point in time.

The set focuses on the Underworld of Theros over the normal world of the plane, with a major plot point being the return of Klothys, the Therosian god of destiny. It features the planeswalker Elspeth Tirel and her torturer Ashiok.

The Gods are at war, and they bring their champions to fight. Elspeth breaks free and defeats Heliod with a weapon created from her past traumas. Klothys finds out about Elspeth escaping the Underworld so she is sending someone to bring her back to the Underworld or capture her. ”

The blurb is just a condensation of what goes on in the set. There is a lot more that goes on than what’s above, and for the most part it’s actually pretty entertaining & well written. However, I will also say that there are places where story & characters are rather rushed. I’ll bring it up again a little later, but I thought I heard back then that Beyond Death was meant to be 2 sets, not one. Given that almost every main release since then has just been one, it’s entirely possible.

Art
The original Theros had wonderful artwork, and Beyond Death continues this quality. Many of the images seen really show off the Greco-Roman nature of the plane incredibly well: from the populace, to all of the various creatures, and the magic that many have access to, it’s clear that the art team were putting in a lot of work. My favorite detail that was in the first release of Theros that comes back in space in this second outing is the enchantment theme of constellations & stars. Because the gods come from & live in the stars (Save for Erebos, who dwells in the Underworld), the various beings born from them look like they’re partially made from stars, and much of the magic of the plane looks like it’s manipulating stars & constellations as well. It’s a pretty interesting take on Greco-Roman mythology, and it continues to be stunning 5 years later.

Mechanics
For the most part, Theros Beyond Death shares some of the mechanics from the original Theros block. Constellation has return, as well as the overarching theme of Enchantments. Whether it’s enchantment creatures (Including the gods of the plane), simple enchantments & auras alongside sagas, or even enchantment artifacts, it’s all back on the table. Given the theme of the Underworld coming into play, they gave us a new mechanic called Escape. Representing getting out of the realm of the dead, it’s actually pretty easy to understand: you tap some mana, and then you remove some cards from your graveyard from the game, and the amount of cards to remove is right next to the mana cost. On top of that, creatures with the mechanic often come back a little stronger after escaping, or they create an effect when they escape. Either way, it’s a flavorful mechanic, and one I hope comes back in the future!

Negative Aspects
Theros Beyond Death only had 2 bad spots in my view. The first point would be the somewhat rushed nature of the set. I don’t know if this was true or not (Probably was), but I could have sworn that TBD was meant to be 2 sets instead of one. If that was the case, it could explain why parts of the story went by fast (There are 3 Titans mentions, but only 2 got released in 2020, with the last in 2024 in Modern Horizons 3). Secondly, and maybe this is more of a nitpick than anything else, but the Escape mechanic can a little irksome to me. Flavor wise it’s perfect, as it shows off how those who are trapped in the Underworld can get out. My issues are that it’s spread out a bit unevenly among the colors, and the fact that there are a few non-creatures with the mechanic as well. Again, I give it to flavor reasons some non-creature spells have them, but it just come across as odd to me.

Overall Impression & Rating
Theros Beyond Death was a fun way to start the 2020 MTG season. It was a return to a fan favorite plane, and it had some new twists that made it different when compared to it’s first appearance. Sure, it felt rushed in a spot or two, and perhaps some of the mechanics were clunky, but our trip to the Underworld of Theros was neat. Hopefully if we go back a 3rd time, things will be smoothed out by then.

Theros Beyond Death gets an 8 to 8.5  out of 10.

And that was my review for Theros Beyond Death. A little dented in some spots, but still comes out strong everywhere else. So, I’ll see you tomorrow for my annual metal overview for my friend Al, and then before the 15th of this month, when we’ll look at a monstrous compilation, and not long after that my review for Katsucon 2025. See you later!