Devil's Horns Zine

  Realize-Two Human Minutes album as reviewed by Mark Jenkins. FFO: Energetic, grim industrial metal. Realize is a sick band that truly delivers Industrial Metal how it should be, free of bullshit and an unrelenting wall of crushing vox/bass and abrasive riffs. Two Human Minutes is their third release and it is staggeringly incredible. You certainly will adore this if you worship Godflesh, Fudge Tunnel etc. This is a terrific genre and the superlatives cannot run hard enough for this release. Realize's first demo/first Mini-album was intensely sick, and Machine Violence was wild but this sets everything on fire with napalm. Moody, dynamic and a gritty, yet antagonistic production aesthetic few get right. This crushing release is brooding, energetic and grim. And fuck me they get everything so right. And as a fellow industrial musician, I am well aware that is not easy to do. The 14 tracks don't overstay their welcome and everything fits well in a gnarly horroric soundtrack mann...

  VICIOUS INSTINCT-Demo review by Mark J. FFO: Violent, metallic hardcore beatdown, no mess, no fuss. Fuck yes, about fucking time that an Aussie band did beatdown hardcore proper, by that I mean the younger bands are energetic and full of beans; but it in Australia falls flat and generally sounds lame. And these bands come and go so quick, just a lovely trend for the fake arse lads to jump on. Xile from across the water in NZ get the vibe and has always done things perfectly. Now we have experienced heads joining the mighty 1054 Record family and this is seriously the best demo I have heard in years. At its very core is a metallic hardcore vibe stemming from Merauder, No Zodiac, Irate, God's Hate etc vibes, but very much in the Laid 2 Rest style pocket, also Moment of Truth, Bulldoze and Cold Hard Truth. So we are talking abrasive, acid-in-your-face vocals and riffs, aggressive song structure and all about hardcore brutal, face-kicking shit. This is so epic and hard AF.   (PI...

TVISB & Robbie Coburn-Womb EP review. FFO: intense Atmospheric Drone that goes deep. This writer first came across TVISB as an artist who offered to do a remix for my band, KNIFE. His work was amazing, and absolutely what a creative should do with a remix, redesign and twist it into the weird places we never envisioned. This new release is a collaboration and here is the dramatically accurate outline: Womb is a collaborative work of music and words by TVISB and Robbie Coburn. Robbie’s text, a poem in dramatic form, challenges the idea of self-identity and masculinity, while also exploring trauma, sex, violence, death and isolation. Dark, claustrophobic ambience surrounds the listener completely and provides an appropriate soundscape to the bleak and at times disturbing text. This is beautifully spot on and whilst drone is often hard work for the new listener, its beauty lies in the persistence and is far removed from the quick fix world we live in, and consume and listen/watch etc....

  Svalbard-The Weight of the Mask album review and interview By Mark J. FFO: Brilliant emotive, crushing and intense blackgaze/post-hardcore. Svalbard is a supreme force of a band and this fourth album and first on Nuclear Blast Records is a dark, atmospheric, haunting and cohesive extreme music masterpiece. Since 2011, this band from Bristol hasn't taken a step wrong and is a robust mix of the grim and the light; a mix of post-hardcore/metal, neo-crust and black metal. The dual vocals are very much in your face, sharp-as-hell songwriting combined with intelligent and super reflective lyrics that touch on personal and sociopolitical topics.  The mature band is obviously a super tight unit based on the never-ending vigorous riff assaults, a seismic rhythm section and a definitive sense of emotive balance across this album. The contrasts contained across the nine tracks are sublime and The Weight of the Mask succeeds where so many bands fail. Often bands that dip in or mix genre...

  Under the Influence(UTI)-Dragon Blood album review by Mark J. FFO: killer, classic hardcore with all the riffs, hooks and breakdowns you need. UTI is a hardcore/punk institution that it is hard to believe has been kicking for 25 years, that's wild. But the band is a brilliant case study of a heavy band progressing with each release, keeping at it and surpassing all expectations. Here's their bio: Under The Influence (UTI) was conceived at a Dapto high school in 1998, inspired by Dead Kennedys/Circle Jerks/AFI style street punk. 25 years later with hundreds of gigs, a bunch of EPs and 4 full-length albums under their belt, UTI have really honed their sound progressing to a heavy crossover of Punk, Hardcore and Metal. UTI has toured up and down the east coast of Australia playing gigs with international and Australian acts including Anti-Nowhere League, Bodyjar, Booze & Glory, Clowns, Frenzal Rhomb, Morning Glory, Strung Out, Strike Anywhere, Toe To Toe, The Bennies, The Ne...

  ERIS & THE DISCIPLES Single/Video: URBAN COWBOY FFO: Dirty, sleazy blues-driven darkened beats and some PJ Harvey/Nick Cave greatness etc. We don't very often review singles or videos, but this one is right in our headspace. Eris & The Disciples are a grand force in raw blues meets dark beats/goth/industrial. And on the live front, these performers will sizzle and shape you in the gritty and naughty way you dream of. This track is a wild banger and the intentions are deep and well thought out. Here is the fantastic bio of this inspired band/project: Eris & The Disciples presents an industrial electronic project inspired by the Greek goddess; Eris. Eris performs an interactive experience delivering the truth and struggles of regaining sexuality and power post heartbreak and battle with fierce jealousy. Sounds throughout compositions are all developed from the process of creating samples through real instrumentation and collections of human-produced electronic patches. ...

  Our Last Enemy interview with Oli by Mark J. Fantastic long form chat!.   Interview with Oli, Our Last Enemy's singer. I was lucky enough to chat with Oli for almost an hour. He is a genuine and super passionate music fan who was a joy to chat with. Their singer is a very chilled dude who is both knowledgeable and funny as hell.  Among the many topics we discussed were: -their guitarist Wade's recent injury and his road back to the live front -the history of the band -recording the 1st album in LA with an industrial legend -their solid catalogue, including a wild remix album with very special guests -their many famous band links including Fear Factory, The Amenta and The Berzerker -the weird curse of the Industrial genre, which is often metal vs. dance, polarising takes on bands and their style etc -varied musical influences of each band member -comparison to the almighty band The Amenta etc -how the recordings were split into two EP's -some of the themes of both EP's...

  Our Last Enemy-As Within So Without EP review by Mark J. FFO: Crushing, intelligent Industrial Metal with all the bells and nasty whistles. Sydney's brilliant Industrial Metal demons Our Last Enemy have consistently put out wicked releases since their formation and this EP is the second part of killer recording sessions that resulted in the previous dazzling 2021 EP As Above So Below and  this as the band said is the final piece of the puzzle. But unlike the annoyance of doing a puzzle, this like its predecessor is a gem and will blow your eardrums and mind. Our Last Enemy confidently adds a unique flavour to their Industrial style, and there is everything from slide guitar to trip-hop to metalcore influence on this utterly memorable classic release. As Within So Without is one of the year's finest metal releases. Strap yourself in, because this is a ripper of an EP. Hex Design opens up the pit in the strangest and most entrancing manner with a slide guitar like at a coun...