SAY HELLO TO MASTER MASSIVE!

Here at Wormwood Laboratories, we’re always on the look out for great bands that seem to fly under the radar. Such a band is Sweden’s  MASTER MASSIVE, who have a lineage going back to the early 90’s. This is a band that deals in an epic mixture of pure doom metal and classic heavy metal in the grand tradition. You can check that for yourself on their new album “White Shadows”. And you can find out more in DR. MALITY’s interview with guitarist JANNE STRANDH,who has been with the band since the beginning. Janne’s got plenty to say, so introduce yourself to MASTER MASSIVE right HERE!

We will soon have a live review of KK’S PRIEST coming up courtesy of COLONEL ANGUS. That’s in addition to DR. M.’s painstaking rundown of the final BLADES OF STEEL concert. And plenty more is in the pipe!

It’s the usual eclectic collection of acts in our weekly Torture Chamber!

FROZEN CROWN                               “The Legend of the Six Kings”

SIGH                                                    “Goh-Ka”

THE NIGHT ETERNAL                        “Cold Velvet”

MUTATION                                        “Esoteric Order of Debauchery”

MYSTIC PROPHECY                          “In Metal”

EUSAPIA                                            “Thin Cities/Desert Festival” EP

A LOOK AT CHICAGO'S CONVENTION CHAOS!

We have something special in store for you humanoids this week, as Wormwood’s resident pizza nerd BOB BURNER introduces us to two of Chicago’s most infamous pop culture conventions, FLASHBACK WEEKEND and FAN EXPO. He tells us the differences between the two and which one is a better example of the convention experience, as well as the ins and outs and strange characters to be found at both. If you’ve ever thought about attending these cons or events like them, this is a really interesting article, as Bob puts the Wormwood spin on things. Read all about it HERE!

Coming up down the pike is DR. MALITY’s interview with Finland’s glum gurus of true doom metal, CARDINAL’S FOLLY! These guys have been living the doomy life for many years now and their hatred of posers is as strong as ever! Something to look forward to. We should also have a live review of KK’S PRIEST from COLONEL ANGUS coming up before too long. And lots more yet to be revealed!

A great Torture Chamber is in store this week, with reviews of heavy hitters like ANTHRAX, CLOVEN HOOF and the aforementioned CARDINAL’S FOLLY!

ANTHRAX                                     “Cursum Perficio”

CARDINAL’S FOLLY                     “Let The Posers Fall!”

CLOVEN HOOF                            “Never A Prophet In Your Own Land”

HATESPHERE                              “Guillotine”

AZATOTH                                     “Carnal Lust Of Blasphemy”

CH’ AHOM                                    “Anthropic Rites Of Sublimation”

A BREAK IN THE MAYHEM...

This last weekend was a busy one for DR. MALITY and other agents of Wormwood, as we attended all three days of the BLADES OF STEEL festival in Madison, WI. Due to the constant debauchery, we didn't have an interview or major feature to post this week. That should resume next week...and we've got plenty coming your way. That includes a very poignant rundown of the Festival, the last of its kind, which featured names like METAL CHURCH, CRIMSON GLORY, RAVEN and many more. Your regularly scheduled Worm-sanity will resume next week in this space!

However, we do have some Torture Chamber reviews for you to check out this week! See below and dig in…

STREET TOMBS                                                "Existence Is Corruption"

THE BARBARIANS OF CALIFORNIA               "Megatons"

KAMELOT                                                         "Dark Asylum"

SARCOMA                                                        "Ponzona"

MAD MAX                                                         "Stories Of Destiny"

TEMPLE OF DREAD                                         "Dreadspawn Dominion"

GET TORN APART BY CHILE'S RIPPER!

This week, DR. MALITY makes his way to Chile to talk to one of that country’s most exciting metal exports, RIPPER! These guys have actually been around for a while, but had a long gap between their previous album and their latest neck-wrecker, “Towards Rebirth”. They should get their mojo back in a hurry with this five-star banger of thrash-tinged death metal (or maybe death-tinged thrash metal). We talk to long time guitarist PATRICIO SPALLINGER about the reason for that long gap and how the band has evolved in the mean time. If you love classic South American metal, prepare to get RIPPED HERE!

Our homegrown pyromaniac BOB BURNER will soon have a feature looking at the ups and downs of Chicago’s horror, sci-fi and comic book conventions, FLASHBACK WEEKEND and FAN CON. This will be something fun and different. Also, the Good Doctor will be attending the final BLADES OF STEEL fest this weekend and will have a report forthcoming. Lots more headed your way soon!

This week’s Torture Chamber has classic thrash with FLOTSAM & JETSAM and EXUMER along with gruesome death metal and glorious symphonic metal!

FLOTSAM & JETSAM                               “Rats In The Temple”

EXUMER                                                   “Death Mask Messiah”

WHARFLURCH                                        “Mycodeath And Rebirth In the Outer Clusters”

CARTILAGE                                              “The Operating Altar”

NOVERIA                                                   “Becoming After”

GENERATION STEEL                                “Steelmachine”

BREAK YOUR CHAINS WITH GODSLAVE!

Germany’s GODSLAVE have been thrashing away for about 20 years now, yet they are still an unknown quantity outside of Europe. Well, Wormwood wants to do their part to change this! Our always active COLONEL ANGUS recently spoke to their guitarist MANNI about their past, their current self-titled album that is breaking through big-time and their future. These guys are known for their positive outlook…”cheerful but violent”, as Monty Python would say…and Manni has a lot to say. Read it all HERE and get ready to crank it hard!

Should have some big news soon…new interviews, some live reviews and more ongoing mischief from the biggest pile of misfits on the web!

We cover just about every kind of metal there is on the latest Torture Chamber!

DEVILDRIVER                                    “Strike And Kill”

KILLER                                               “The Grand Finale”

AIRBOURNE                                      “Airbourne”

MELTIFICATION                               “Meltification”

THROES                                            “The Colorless Light Of Emptiness”

MORTEM                                          “Morketid”

HORROR RETURNS TO WORMWOOD WITH "ZOMBIE" AND "MONSTER MAYHEM"!

HORROR makes its return to the pages of Wormwood this week, as the diabolical DARK STARR puts some iconic Blu-Ray releases under his microscope. First off, he looks at the legendary Lucio Fulci gorefest “ZOMBIE” making its Blu-Ray debut. Any movie featuring a zombie battling a shark has got to be worth a look. Read all about it HERE! Then he looks at a four-in-one release uniting some of the greatest 50’s B-movies in one package…it’s “MONSTER MAYHEM” and it features “GIANT FROM THE UNKNOWN”, “MONSTER FROM GREEN HELL”, “BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS” and “FRANKENSTEIN’S DAUGHTER”! What’s the verdict on this monster mash? Find out HERE!

An extra-sized Torture Chamber features just about everything underground!

IRONFLAME                                       “Worlds To Conquer”

SKUMSTRIKE                                    “Flawless Intrigue From Hell”

STATIC ABYSS                                   “The Dying Hunt”

JEHOVAH ON DEATH                       “Lagrimas De Oro”

SEMANTRON                                    “Secrets Of A Krummholz Heart”

CRYPTORIUM                                   “Through the Bowels Of Ceaseless Dissonance”

ATOMIC AGGRESSOR                     “The Occult Forces”

BONERIPPER                                    “Radiant In Ruin”

RAHATY                                             “Bestial Lustmord”

FLESHCRAWL BRINGS CARNAGE TO WORMWOOD!

Hailing from Germany, the mighty FLESHCRAWL have been setting benchmarks for brutal Swedish-style death metal for almost 40 years now! That longevity deserves to be celebrated, so DR. MALITY raised a goblet of gore and conducted an interview with drummer BASTIAN HERZOG, who has been there since Day One. Bastian gives an honest opinion on the many hardships FLESHCRAWL has endured over the years, including the death of a former frontman. This is a very revealing interview from a band that’s been churning out high quality death for decades…read it HERE!

Speaking of interviews, COLONEL ANGUS chimes in with a chat of FLESHCRAWL’s countrymen, GODSLAVE, who have been keeping the high standards of German thrash at the forefront in their own way. Look for that one to pop up here soon! And more should soon be on the way…

You’ll find GODSLAVE in this week’s Torture Chamber, along with MOONSPELL, TOTALITÄR and more!

MOONSPELL                                         “Far From God”

DEATHGRAVE                                       “Hell Is Evil”

GODSLAVE                                            “Godslave”

NINTH REALM                                      “Damnation’s Veil”

CRITICAL DEFIANCE                            “Rivers Of Blood”

TOTALITÄR                                            “Totalitär”

WITCHSORROW ENTERS THE DEVIL'S WORKSHOP!

This week, THERON MOORE heads deep into the gloomy countryside of Jolly Olde England in search of DOOM! He finds more than he bargained for with WITCHSORROW! This diabolical trio play only the truest of doom metal and they revel in the supernatural aura of rural Britain. Theron had a terrific chat with husband and wife team NECROSKULL and EMILY WITCH about what the true nature of doom metal is. They talk about how they hooked up, what their early days were like and the sinister new album “The Devil And All His Works”. This one is highly recommended to any true doom fan and it can be found HERE!

The Good Doctor has selected the next subject for the Wormwood Files…the incredibly strange alien encounters at the Santa Isabel Ika-Renault Factory in Argentina, circa 1972. This ranks with the more bizarre paranormal encounters ever reported!

DARK FUNERAL praises the Beast in this week’s Torture Chamber!

SALLOW MOTH                        “Hydrophilous Brood”

MASTER MASSIVE                    “White Shadows”

DARK FUNERAL                        “A Beast To Praise”

EXP                                             “EXP”

NOTHINGNESS                        “Godslaughter”

MOB RULES                             “Stories From The Verdant Vale”

STARE IF YOU DARE, INTO THE HYPNOTIC EYE!

This week, Wormwood will help you bark like a dog…sweat like a pig…and hold a balloon between your legs! And then you might set your hair on fire or wash your face with battery acid! All with the help of “THE HYPNOTIC EYE”! I take an in-depth look at this sleazy but fascinating shocker from 1960, where beautiful women are mutilating themselves in the most grotesque ways. Does the handsome hypnotist THE GREAT DESMOND have anything to do with it? Or perhaps it is his gorgeous assistant JUSTINE who’s behind it all? Check it out HERE to get the dope on this one of a kind movie from the great age of “psycho killers”!

A band that should be on your radar is Sweden’s MASTER MASSIVE, who create an epic hybrid of doom, power and progressive metal. I’m happy to say I grabbed an interview with the band’s guiding light, JAN STRIDH! Coming soon to Wormwood!

The Torture Chamber has got something for everybody this time around…if you can stand high volume and intense music!

HORRIFIER                                               “Revelations Of Gore”

FUMING MOUTH                                    “The Ringing Bell”

JESS BY THE LAKE                                   “Human”

IRON SLAUGHT                                      “Metallic Torments”

MISCREANCE                                           “Reminiscence”

HANTERNOZ                                            “A Hed An Noz, A Noz, A Noz”

YETI ON HORSEBACK                             “Traditional Addictions”

GOD UNKNOWN                                     “Last Glimpse Of Daylight”

ASTRIFEROUS                                          “Atavistic Unraveling”

AN INTERVIEW WITH CRIMSON GLORY AND A LIVE REVIEW OF RUSH!

The industrious COLONEL ANGUS goes into overdrive this week, with two monumental contributions to the massive Wormwood library. First off is his interview with one of progressive metal’s most legendary bands, CRIMSON GLORY! He talks to their impressive new vocalist TRAVIS WILLS about the new album “Chasing The Hydra” and staying true to the CRIMSON GLORY sound. Check that out HERE! Then Angus turns his attention to a live review of Canada’s true titans of rock, RUSH! These guys have delivered the tour of the year so far, but what did Angus think? Find out HERE and feast your eyes on a ton of exclusive pics as well!

Should have some new for you humanoids soon! As always, stay tuned to this Worm-channel!

This week’s Torture Chamber says farewell to a 40 year metal institution among a bunch of other steel-plated reviews!

SOLACE                                          “Faded, Failing Ruin”

TORPOR                                         “Dungeon Descent”

SEVEN METAL SINS                      “Legacy Of Chaos”

SINNER                                           “Boom Bang Goodbye”

GUILT TRIP                                     “Armour Of Angels”

AKHOTH                                        “Of Might and Hierarchy”

EXPLORE THE BIRTH OF DEATH METAL WITH LEFT TO DIE!

The influence of DEATH and its founder CHUCK SCHULDINER is still keenly felt 25 years after Chuck’s passing and the end of the band. Many acts are basing their whole reason for existence on being a tribute to DEATH, none more so than the excellent LEFT TO DIE, whose new album “Initium Mortis” plays songs from the earliest days of Chuck’s band. Recently, our Wisconsin operative MERCYFUL MIKE had a lengthy chat with MATT HARVEY, the leader of LEFT TO DIE and also a member of EXHUMED, GRUESOME and more! This interview is a MUST for anybody nostalgic about the earliest days of death metal and DEATH itself. So get morbid and read all about it HERE!

Torture Chamber this week is all over the place from epic black metal to raw and nasty punk rock and sickening death metal…and more!

STORMKEEP                                          “The Nocturnes Of Iswylm”

THÆTAS                                                  “The Irredeemable Age”

ROCK JUSTICE                                       “You’ve Been Served”

CRIMSON STEEL                                    “Show No Fear”

U.S. BASTARDS                                      “Negligent Discharge”

LIQUIFIED DECOMPOSITION               “Bloated In The Pond”

APOSTLE                                                “A Splinter In the Infinite Noumenon”

PYTHONIC                                              “The Laws Of Karma”

JUNON                                                     “The Golden Citadel Of The Astral Sphere”

A TRIP TO THE AMAZON TO MEET THE MAPINGUARI!

Get your cans of OFF! and khakis ready, we're headed to the deepest forests of the Amazon in search of the monstrous MAPINGUARI! It's a new edition of the WORMWOOD FILES and the Good Doctor is here to find the truth behind the legend of the Amazon's most mysterious monster! Is it a giant sloth? Is it the South American Bigfoot? Is it a demon of mythology? Or is it just a bunch of hooey? Read our report HERE and make up your own mind!

Coming up soon will be some new PHILM PHREAKS reviews from the diabolical DARK STARR! He takes a look at the new Blu-Ray release of Fulci's notorious "ZOMBIE" as well as a cool multi-disc release of great 50's B-movies..."THE BRAIN FROM PLANET AROUS", "GIANT FROM THE UNKNOWN", "MONSTER FROM GREEN HELL"  and "FRANKENSTEIN'S DAUGHTER"! Keep checking back for more updates on what's coming up in the Weird World of Wormwood!

Check out the amazing stylistic range in the latest edition of the Torture Chamber!

DEEP PURPLE                                               "Splat!"

GOETIA                                                         “Mortuary Cult”

A FOREST OF STARS                                   “Stack Overflow In Corpse Pile Interface”

NINE POUND HAMMER                             “Too Outlaw For Outlaw Country”

ADMIRAL SIR CLOUDSLEY SHOVELL        “The Trouble With The Shovell”

RUTHLESS                                                     “Curse Of The Beast”

GET ANGRY WITH PRO-PAIN!

This week, we head to the tough streets of New York to chat with one of the hardest of hardcore bands, the legendary PRO-PAIN. This is not the first time we’ve chatted with the band’s mastermind GARY MESKIL, but it’s been 11 years since we’ve gotten an album from them. Well, they’re back and they’re PISSED! The new album is called “Stone Cold Anger” and contains 11 years of pent-up fury. Let Gary tell you what ticks him off and why there was such a long wait by clicking right HERE!!

Last week, I told you to expect new interviews with CRIMSON GLORY and WITCHSORROW. Now you can add Chile’s most bloodthirsty band RIPPER to that collection! These guys have recorded one of the year’s best albums. Plus COLONEL ANGUS will have a live concert review of no less than Canada’s favorite sons, RUSH! Always working on new surprises for you, our faithful public!

Torture Chamber is bigger and badder this week, with some killer bands and reviews!

BELUSHI SPEED BALL                                       “Toxic Waste Was Everywhere In the 80’s”

LEFT TO DIE                                                       “Initium Mortis”

DESTRUCTOR                                                    “Tales Of Glory”

IRON KINGDOM                                                “Shadows And Dust”

PHANTOM                                                         “Not Midnight Yet”

EVERGREY                                                         “Architects Of A New Weave”

HECATE ENTHRONED                                     “The Corpse Of A Titan, A Lament Long Buried”

HELLEVATE                                                        “Killicon Valley”

SEA SLEEPER                                                    “Burden Of Antlers”

BOB'S BURN PIT #5 IS A CINEMATIC INFERNO!

Are you ready to feel the BURN? BOB BURNER is back this week with the fifth edition of THE BURN PIT. For this excursion into the world of weird film, he takes us back to 1988 and that legendary VHS classic “DEMONWARP”, featuring GEORGE KENNEDY on the trail of Bigfoot, zombies and aliens! Then it’s time to visit Japan in 1975 and join “THE GREAT CHASE”, where a hot female race car driver and kung fu expert finds all kind of craziness. Lastly, we look at the obscure 1989 film “MARLEY’S REVENGE: A MONSTER MOVIE”, which doesn’t know if it wants to be a horror film or a comedy! Join Bob HERE and get ready to burn!

The hits just keep on coming here at Wormwood! This week, I can announce that COLONEL ANGUS has gotten an interview with the classic prog metal band CRIMSON GLORY and their singer TRAVIS WILLS! Not only that, but THERON MOORE has snagged a chat with English doom masters WITCHSORROW! Add them to the already announced LEFT TO DIE and FLESHCRAWL! With more on the way!

As usual, our Torture Chamber provides another musical adventure!

WAILIN STORMS                                     “The Arsonist”

RIPPER                                                    “Towards Rebirth”

HARDLINE                                               “Shout”

W.M.D.                                                    “Against All Warnings”

LEX LEGION                                           “Lex Legion”

CYHRA                                                   “Requiem For A Pipe Dream”

METAL, MYTHOLOGY AND MADNESS WITH LAIR OF THE MINOTAUR!

Chicago is the home of many a rough and brutal metal band…CIANIDE, USURPER, CARDIAC ARREST come to mind. Rising once again from this fetid urban maze comes LAIR OF THE MINOTAUR, a band that can stand with the best of any of them. They are no strangers to Wormwood, but it’s been many years since we’ve heard from them. The silence is shattered! I spoke to STEVE RATHBONE, who’s been in the LAIR since the beginning, about their recent return and brand new album, “I Hail I”. Hear what this rugged vet of the Chicago metal wars has to say right HERE!

Last week, I told you humanoids that MERCYFUL MIKE snagged an interview with MATT HARVEY and LEFT TO DIE. Well, the putrid death keeps rolling, as I, Dr. Abner Mality, have also gotten a chat with Germany’s long-running exponents of chainsaw riffing, FLESHCRAWL! Keep an eye out for my interview with drummer BASTIAN HERZOG. LOTS more cool stuff on the way, I will spill the beans as they roll out!

Tired of summer heat and cheer? Then check out this week’s dark and gloomy Torture Chamber!

DARKTHRONE                                           “Pre-Historic Metal”

WITCHSORROW                                        “The Devil And All His Works”

CONFESS                                                   “Metalmorphosis”

COFFIN HUNTERS                                     “Cosmic Dawn”

LEATHERWITCH                                         “First Spell”

GALVANIST                                                 “The Silence Between Stars”

UNDERTAKERS                                          “Global Dominion”

SOULBURN                                                 “Quantifying Cosmic Doom”

ABYSSAL RIFT                                            “Relic Of Great Ash”

A BRUTAL LOOK AT HELL'S HEROES VIII!

You Worm-fiends know that we like nothing better than a big, loud metal fest packed with killer bands and sweaty fans! Well, this week we’re bringing you a blow-by-blow account of one of the very best fests in the U.S., HELL’S HEROES! Our buddy in Houston, COLONEL ANGUS, was there and he managed to cover EVERY SINGLE BAND at this four day event, including even the Pre-Party. And what a line-up! Bands raged from German legends UDO and DORO to the thrashy likes of HELLBUTCHER and ONSLAUGHT, and everything in between. The review is packed with Angus’ great photos, too. You won’t find a better and more thorough review of HELL’S HEROES than right HERE!

I mentioned that we’re working on several big time interviews. Well, I can tell you that MERCYFUL MIKE has snagged a real ripper with the busiest man in metal, MATT HARVEY and it’s mostly in connection with the amazing DEATH tribute band LEFT TO DIE! Stay tuned because more big news is coming!

Here’s another edition of the Torture Chamber to knock your head right off your pencil neck!

NUNSLAUGHTER                                    “Satanic Chaos Legions”

MAKE                                                        “Exegesis At The End Of Time”

KHEMMIS                                                 “Khemmis”

DEAD VOID                                              “Cranial Devastation”

ENDSEEKER                                            “Coffin Born”

MOONLIGHT HAZE                                “Interstellar Madness”

CAN YOU SURVIVE A VISIT FROM MAD ALEISTER?

The great metal band EXCITER looks to have finally bitten the dust, which is sad, but from the ashes arises some great new bands. A few weeks back, I talked to John Ricci’s new project POWERRAGE but this time it’s THERON MOORE’S turn to speak to MAD ALEISTER, which features long-time EXCITER bassist ALLEN JOHNSON as well as members of JOE THRASHER and INFRARED! They are about to drop a devastating debut on the metal public and Wormwood is here with an interview about what to expect! Get the lowdown on MAD ALEISTER right HERE!

Movie madness is coming to Wormwood! Expect a new BURN PIT from Bombastic BOB BURNER featuring looks at 3 crazy cult films…”DEMONWARP”, “THE GREAT CHASE” and “MARLEY’S REVENGE”! Plus my own expose on “THE HYPNOTIC EYE” will soon be here!

Our Torture Chambers are always packed with wild music reviews, but this one is even more stuffed than usual!

ARMORED SAINT                                       “Emotion Factory Reset”

DEAFKIDS                                                   “Cicatrizes Do Futuro”

FROZEN SOUL                                           “No Place Of Warmth”

ETERNAL EVIL                                           “Forever Feared”

SUNN 0)))                                                    “Sunn 0)))”

EMBRYONIC AUTOPSY                             “Rise Of the Mutated”

HELL COMES TO WORMWOOD WITH THE GODLESS IV TOUR!

Wormwood is unfortunately unable to take you on a guided tour of hell, but we can provide the next best thing: a concert tour featuring four of the most blasphemous metal bands in the world! That’s exactly what the GODLESS IV tour provided, with a package boasting the likes of BEHEMOTH, DEICIDE, ROTTING CHRIST and IMMOLATION! More fun than an open casket funeral! DR. ABNER MALITY recently caught the tour when it stopped at the Rave in Milwaukee and he’s got the lowdown on the event HERE! Including plenty of exclusive photos! Grab your crucifix and come along!

Speaking of huge concert events, we finally got COLONEL ANGUS’ report on Houston’s mighty HELL’S HEROES Fest, featuring tons of metal bands from around the planet! That will be coming up very shortly! We are also working on some of the biggest interviews to ever appear here at Wormwood Laboratories!

This week’s Torture Chamber is a real bonanza, with VENOM, WITCH RIPPER and Mr. TEDDY HORSE!

WITCH RIPPER                                        “Through The Hourglass”

VENOM                                                     “Into Oblivion”

WITCHING HOUR                                    “Descending…Where Time Has Ceased To Exist”

MIDNIGHT RIDER                                    “Limited Infinity”

DITHEIST                                                  “Cosmic Liar”

TEDDY HORSE                                        “BadgersWex”

COPROLITH                                             “Putrescence”

LUNGBURNER                                         “Dogma”

ZANJEER                                                  “Seher-e-Maqhoor”

SURA’SURA                                              “Warfare Metal”

THE FURY OF MELECHESH IS LET LOOSE!

We let a rampaging genie out of the bottle this week and it’s name is MELECHESH! Well, more properly, it is ASHMEDI, the long time frontman of this Mesopotamian metal whirlwind, who have spent more than 30 years combining classic pre-Egyptian vibes with the thrashiest of metal. After 11 years wandering in the desert, MELECHESH have returned with a new EP “Sentinels of Shamash” and more is on the way! Ashmedi is one of the more intelligent and articulate subjects we have talked to here, which makes this a very entertaining interview. See for yourself HERE!

This week’s Torture Chamber features a band with a name longer than this sentence as well as the final farewell from SEPULTURA!

ONCHOCERCIASIS ESOPHAGOGASTRODUODENSCOPY         “Fugue Gnawed From The Scabbed God’s Cerebrum”

SEPULTURA                                           “The Cloud of Unknowing”

GODSTICKS                                           “VOiD”

ERDVE                                                    “Epigramma”

WARSENAL                                            “Endless Beginnings…”

CARBON TOMB                                    “A Passage To The Neutron Star”

TWO NEW HORROR REVIEWS TO MELT YOUR MIND!

We got a double dose of freaky fright flicks for you humanoids to check out this week, courtesy of the one and only DARK STARR! He first takes a look at 2007's "THE CELLAR DOOR", which seems on the surface to be another "kidnapped woman" flick, but which pulls some real clever twists on the formula. Who's really in charge? Find out HERE! Then things get REALLY weird as we examine "COVEN OF THE BLACK CUBE", a nasty tidbit about a gathering of witches getting revenge on the men who abused them. Add in some underground metal bands and you've got a real cult item! Read all about it HERE!

Lots of things swirling in the Wormwood pot! I'll spill the beans as things become clearer!

An extra size and extra weird edition of the Torture Chamber is now served up for your delectation!

NUCLEAR TOMB                                                            "Epoch Inhumane"

NERVOSA                                                                        "Slave Machine"

GUS G.                                                                             "Steel Burner"

ARMED FOR APOCALYPSE                                           “The Earth Is Breathing Beneath Me”

RED32                                                                              “Cryogenic Dreams”

PHARMACIST                                                                  “Vertebrae After Vertebrae”

THE OLDEST HOUSE                                                     “The Art of Abysswalking”

ANOTHER DEMON                                                         “As Above, So Below”

SCONFITTA                                                                     “Essere Nessuno”

THRASH OF THE TITANS HITS HOUSTON HARD!

Our man in Houston, the Concrete Cowboy himself, COLONEL ANGUS has got his greasy little fingers all over any metal show of interest in that area. Recently, he was lucky enough to see the Houston edition of the THRASH OF THE TITANS tour, which featured three legends of the genre in action…TESTAMENT, OVERKILL and DESTRUCTION! That lineup will make any thrasher’s mouth water. Well, he covered it all and got some awesome photos to boot. You can see what I mean HERE!

Angus will also soon have a report of this year’s HELL’S HEROES for us as well. And Yours Truly will be covering the Milwaukee stop of the GODLESS IV tour with BEHEMOTH, DEICIDE, ROTTING CHRIST and IMMOLATION. Oh yeah, and THERON MOORE tells me he’s grabbed an interview with new band MAD ALEISTER, which features ex-EXCITER members. So lots going on here…

The Torture Chamber this week starts hot with CORROSION OF CONFORMITY and keeps the heat coming!

CORROSION OF CONFORMITY                              “Good God/Baad Man”

FLESHCRAWL                                                           “Epitome Of Carnage”

AZIOLA CRY                                                              “Dysphoria Ritual”

TELOMYRAS                                                             “Duskfall”

BEWITCHED                                                             “Diabolical Death Mass”

CANVAS OF SILENCE                                              “As The World Tree Fell”

WE GET BLITZED BY TAILGUNNER!

Right now, the United Kingdom is going through its second Blitz…but this time, it’s a “Midnight Blitz”, courtesy of London’s heavy metal hellions TAILGUNNER! And Dr. Mality is here to tell you all about it with the help of bass player TOM HEWSON! These guys are attracting a ton of attention with their classic metal attack. Tom tells us all about the band’s rapid rise, its lonely position as standard bearer of British metal and their hopes for the future. Get the intel right HERE!

PRO-PAIN, one of the longest lasting and most outspoken hardcore bands, is on their way back to Wormwood after many years! The Doc has managed to swing a chat with GARY MESKIL, who’s been with the band since Day One. We should also have a new Burn Pit from BOB BURNER soon and lots more cool stuff to reveal!

Quite an odd and interesting crew is on tap with this week’s Torture Chamber!

NEUROSIS                                    “An Undying Love For The Burning World”

SACRIVERSUM                             “Before the Birth Of Light”

RESTLESS SPIRIT                         “Restless Spirit”

LANTLOS                                      “Nowhere In Between Forever”

IGNOBLETH                                  “Manor Of Primitive Anticreation”

SOEN                                             “Reliance”

NECROFIER BRINGS OBLIVION TO WORMWOOD!

This week, we wind up in Hell or Texas or maybe both because they are one and the same, as THERON MOORE has a chat with the hellish NECROFIER, who are rapidly moving up the black metal ladder in America. He speaks with CHRISTIAN LARSON, who is not only a guiding force for NECROFIER but also helps put together the excellent HELL’S HEROES festival in Houston and is a member in NIGHT COBRA and TERROR CORPSE as well. How does one guy handle this work load? Does Old Nick lend a hand? Find out the answer HERE!

We continue to be busier than a Southern Baptist preacher in a whorehouse here at Wormwood! The new Wormwood Files will look at the mystery beast of the Amazon, the monstrous MAPINGUARI. We should have a couple of really huge interview announcements before too long as well as some new cult film coverage to melt your brain. The Chronicles march on!

The latest Torture Chamber bows at the altar of METAL CHURCH, plus lots more!

METAL CHURCH                                “Dead To Rights”

PRO-PAIN                                           “Stone Cold Anger”

MELTING ROT                                    “Infatuation With Premeditation”

LAIR OF THE MINOTAUR                  “I Hail I”

GORRCH                                            “Stillamentum”

NIGHT SPECTRE                               “Night Spectre”

VOIVOD TOUCHES DOWN AT THE CRUCIBLE CLUB!

One encounters greatness and innovation seldom in these times, but here at Wormwood Laboratories, we seek out both. That’s what led DR. MALITY to pay a visit to Madison’s Crucible Club, where Canada’s weird and wonderful VOIVOD made an appearance recently. This band has always been on the ragged edge of the future and it was a real privilege to see them in this club environment. Along for the ride were Virginia’s rough and rugged BAT as well as local up and comers FLYING FUZZ. Check out the Doc’s report HERE…including exclusive photos!

And we’ve got even more cool stuff to announce. THERON MOORE tells me he’s snagged a chat with one of America’s most outstanding black metal bands, NECROFIER, and their master mind CHRISTIAN LARSON…who also happens to be the guiding force behind the HELL’S HEROES Metalfest (which you’ll soon see covered here as well). And DARK STARR has some cutting edge Philm Phreaks reviews for us…the 2007 shocker “THE CELLAR DOOR” and the super low budget heavy metal horror “COVEN OF THE BLACK CUBE”. I should have even more new to lay on you humanoids next time!

A big edition of the Torture Chamber this week, with some pretty brutal bands!

IMMOLATION                                      “Descent”

FUNEBRARUM                                   “Beckoning The Void of Eternal Silence”

THE QUILL                                          “Master of the Skies”

DESOLUS                                           “Dwellers Of The Twilight Void”

NEQUIENT                                          “Avarice”

VOID OF SLEEP                                 “The Abyss Into Which We All Have To Stare”

RESURRECTED                                  “Perpetual”

GODSNAKE                                       “Inhale The Noise”

BATTLEGRAVE                                   “Enslavement”

RELIC                                                 “Crown Of Flies”

MAKE WAY FOR THE NEPTUNE POWER FEDERATION!

This week, we welcome MERCYFUL MIKE into Wormwood’s pantheon of interviewers! For his first chat, he’s gone all the way to Australia and beyond to speak to THE NEPTUNE POWER FEDERATION and their mischievous bassist, INVERTED CRUCIFOX! If you’ve never heard these guys before, take some time and check out their outrageously theatrical mix of hard rock, blues, pop and metal…I’ll wait! Back so soon? Good, check out what Mike and The Fox had to say right HERE!

I hear through the grapevine that THERON MOORE has gotten an interview with Milwaukee’s most brutal band, PIG’S BLOOD! They’ll be squealing in torment in a few weeks! We’ve also got lots of live reviews on tap, including my visit to the “Godless IV” tour featuring BEHEMOTH, DEICIDE, ROTTING CHRIST and IMMOLATION. I might also be checking out a most unusual show at the local pub…but more on that later!

Another wide-ranging edition of The Torture Chamber now awaits your visit…

POWER PALADIN                              “Beyond The Reach Of Enchantment”

VOMITORY                                         “In Death Throes”

SLAGMAUR                                        “Hulder’s Ritual”

CHARIOTS OVERDRIVE                   “The End Of Antiquity”

OLDOWAN GASH                             “1000 Dreams Of War”

PALMAR DE TROYA                          “III”

UNLEASH THE BEAST WITH POWERRAGE!

The hits keep coming hard and fast here at Wormwood Laboratories! Got some big news coming up in a bit, but for now, let’s venture into the raging world of new Canadian band POWERRAGE! Did I say new? Well, they are, but their members should be well known to any fan of classic thrash and power metal. They include JOHN RICCI and JACQUES BELANGER of EXCITER fame as well as TODD PILLON of WITCHKILLER and drummer LUCAS DERRY. John and  Jacques were kind enough to talk to me about the path to POWERRAGE, their very different views on leaving EXCITER and the pummeling new album “Beast”. Get ready to RAGE right HERE!

I said I had some big news and I wasn’t kidding! I got 2 more interviews with major names in the metal underground to share with you humanoids! First off, I snagged England’s bright new metal hopes TAILGUNNER, who are red hot right now. And then I talked to the giants of Mesopotamian metal madness, MELECHESH, whom I am an unabashed huge fan of. So add those to a list that includes NEPTUNE POWER FEDERATION, LAIR OF THE MINOTAUR and more on the way!

Also got some real heavy hitters in this week’s Torture Chamber!

CRIMSON GLORY                                   “Chasing The Hydra”

EXODUS                                                   “Goliath”

ROB ZOMBIE                                           “The Great Satan”

KERRIGAN                                                “Wayfarer”

WINTERFYLLETH                                     “The Unyielding Season”

PIG'S BLOOD                                           "Destroying The Spirit"

GOATPSALM                                             “Beneath”

SONS OF ETERNITY                                “Human Beast”

DEFECT DESIGNER                                 “Depressants”

GET YOURSELF A DOSE OF KATE'S ACID!

Over the years, we’ve talked to a lot of legendary metal figures but the female of the species has not often been among them. That changes this week as DR. MALITY speaks to KATE DE LOMBAERT from Belgium’s first speed metal band, ACID! Back in the day, Kate was one of the very few female voices in true heavy metal. Now, 40 years after the original band broke up, she’s back with KATE’S ACID and it’s a privilege to speak to her. What was it like being a pioneer in those wild n’ woolly days? What was it like bringing it all back after decades? Click HERE and get yer dose of ACID!

Lots more news! I also got an interview with Chicago’s ferocious mythological metal maniacs LAIR OF THE MINOTAUR, back from the Land of the Dead after a long layoff! Look for that here! And I’ve also decided to do a write-up on the sleazy and unforgettable grindhouse classic “THE HYPNOTIC EYE” from 1960! More cool stuff coming down the pike!

Got a loaded and very heavy helping of the Torture Chamber for you this week!

MONSTROSITY                                   “Screams From Beneath The Surface”

POWERRAGE                                      “Beast”

CRUEL FORCE                                    “Haneda”

TULUS                                                 “Morbid Desires”

GRAVEMASS                                      “This Is The Way”

FIRMAMENT                                      “For Centuries Alive”

RIDE INTO BATTLE WITH GREYHAWK!

'Tis time to venture forth into fantastic realms with GREYHAWK as your guide! This Seattle band is one of the rising traditional metal/power metal bands in the US and have proven it with their latest album “Warriors Of Greyhawk”. So it came to pass that BOB BURNER took up sword, shield and a box of pizza and ventured into the Forbidden Forest to speak to bass player DARIN WALL about the band, the new album and much else besides. 'Twas a light-hearted yet revealing chat which you can sample HERE!

Lots of cool stuff happening in these parts! We will soon have our first interview from MERCYFUL MIKE, who spoke to the way out and wonderful NEPTUNE POWER FEDERATION from Australia (and beyond Orion!). That will be coming up soon, along with COLONEL ANGUS’ live report from the HELL”S HEROES fest in Houston and my own coverage of the VOIVOD/BAT/FLYING FUZZ show in Madison. Even more is in the pipe!

An extra big and extra weird Torture Chamber is on tap this week!

TARDIGRADE INFERNO                              “Hush”

VREID                                                           “The Skies Turn Black”

L. A. GUNS                                                   “Leopard Skin”

GUTVOID                                                     “Liminal Shrines”

EVERMORE                                                  “Mournbraid”

WRANG                                                        “Verwording”

CARPENTER BRUT                                      “Leather Temple”

TOXIKULL                                                     “Turbulence”

BRAS D’HONNEUR                                      “Hate Speech”

WORMWOOD GETS THE LION'S SHARE!

It's been a long dry spell for Swedish metal mongers LION'S SHARE but they've roared back to life in 2026 with their heaviest album ever! And who else but COLONEL ANGUS is better to talk to them for Wormwood? He speaks to guitarist LARS CHRISS, who proves to be a very articulate fellow that gives very detailed answers regarding the reasons for the band’s long absence, the story behind the new album “Inferno” and adapting to the massive changes in the music business since LION’S SHARE’s start in the 1980’s. It’s a pretty revealing chat that you can check out HERE!

As always, we got a lot of irons in the fire here and in the coming weeks, you should find out exactly what they are, so stay tuned!

This week’s Torture Chamber features a number of bands with strange one word names!

AEON GODS                                         “The Rebirth of Light”

SYLOSIS                                                “The New Flesh”

STATE OF ILLUSION                             “Pluto’s Ghost”

LOMOR                                                  “Sabouk Rouge”

MORDEO                                               “Mordeo”

LEAD INJECTOR                                   “Witching Attack”

A DIVE INTO THE WILD WORLD OF SHAW BROTHERS' HORROR!

I’ll bet you humanoids remember watching “Kung Fu Theater” back in the 80’s, when the chop socky epics of Hong Kong’s legendary Shaw Brothers Studios filled the airwaves with violence. Did you know that Shaw Brothers also did plenty of horror films as well? And that they were as batshit crazy as anything ever filmed? BOB BURNER knows and he’s here to tell us all about it in the latest “Burn Pit”, which looks at four nutty horrors from the Beastly East: “HEX”, “SEEDING OF A GHOST”, “THE OILY MANIAC” and “BATTLE WIZARD”! Experience all the craziness HERE!

We’re also getting ready for concert season around here! Our Concrete Cowboy from Houston, COLONEL ANGUS, will have a major report from this year’s version of HELL’S HEROES, featuring LOUDNESS, WARLOCK, TANKARD and a ton more. DR. MALITY will have the dirt on the legendary VOI VOD playing up in Madison, WI as well. And THERON MOORE has grabbed an interview with ex-EXCITER members JOHN RICCI and JACQUES BELANGER, who are involved in a killer new band, POWERRAGE!

And now for your regularly scheduled Torture Chamber!

THE NEPTUNE POWER FEDERATION                           “Mondo Tomorrow”

MELECHESH                                                                    “Sentinels of Shamash”

URNE                                                                                “Setting Fire To The Sky”

AZKETEM                                                                         “Amid”

CRYPTIC SHIFT                                                               “Overspace and Supertime”

STAINLESS                                                                      “Lady of Lust and Steel”

MEET MARYLAND'S MAVERICK, DON DOHLER!

We’re overdue for a trip to the world of weird cinema, so this week I’m glad to say we’ve got one of the best articles we’ve ever posted in Philm Phreaks. It’s my in-depth look at the films and career of Baltimore’s best bad boy, DON DOHLER! Making it even better, I’ve included an exclusive interview with Don’s son, GREG DOHLER, who has a lot of personal anecdotes about his maverick dad, who helmed such low budget classics as “FIEND” and “NIGHTBEAST”! We also talk about Don’s interest in underground comix and the legendary FX mag “Cinemagic” that he started. Get the down low on the Dohlers HERE!

Tons of hot news fresh outta Wormwood Labs this week! BOB BURNER has gotten us his first real interview…it’s with the melodic metal masters GREYHAWK who are causing a big stir in traditional metal circles. Speaking of classic metal, I’ve got one with the infamous KATE from classic Euro speed metal freaks ACID! After many years, the band is back under the name of KATE’S ACID. We are just getting started for 2026, so hang on, it will be a wild ride!

When it comes to wild, nothing beats the Wormwood Torture Chamber!

LION’S SHARE                                          “Inferno”

KATE’S ACID                                             “Hellbender”

TERATOMA                                               “Longing Veracity”

NO/MAS                                                    “No Peace”

TOTAL MANIAC                                        “Love Overdrive”

VANISHMENT                                           “And Now We Die”

GET IN SHAPE WITH VITAMIN X!

Time for a prescription direct from Wormwood Laboratories! You know that we're always concerned about the health of our victi...er, readers. Well, DR. MALITY says there's nothing better to get your motor running than a huge dose of VITAMIN X! Yes sir, thrashing your brains out to this long running Dutch crossover band has proven to be beneficial in almost every case. The Doc confirmed this during his recent interview with bassist ALEX KOUTSMAN, who filled us in on the doings of these gung-ho straight edgers. You can find out for yourself how healthy VITAMIN X can be by clicking HERE!

LOTS of great news on the way! COLONEL ANGUS recently talked to guitarist LARS CHRISS from killer Euro metal band LION'S SHARE and we will have the results here! THERON MOORE has also been talking to people who really matter and we may have some interviews soon from new guys BOB BURNER and MERCYFUL MIKE! Plus a new Wormwood Files as well!

The Torture Chamber boasts diabolical black metal, a dose of pure British steel and some classic Swedish hard rock...amongst others!

NECROFIER                                                                           "Transcend Into Oblivion"

TAILGUNNER                                                                        "Midnight Blitz"

NEMOROUS                                                                         "What Remains When Hope Has Failed"

DIVINE CHAOS                                                                     "Hate Reactor"

TREAT                                                                                   "The Wild Card"

DWELLNOUGHT                                                                 “Monument of Ephemerality”

WORMWOOD'S BEST OF 2025 LISTS ARE HERE!

Yes, humanoids, it’s that wonderful time of the year when all the goons here at Wormwood get to list their Top 10 releases for the previous 12 months. This year sees the addition of MERCYFUL MIKE and BOB BURNER to the crew, as well as the usual gang of degenerates.

As a teaser, I now present each writer’s #1 pick for the year…click HERE to see the lists in all their glory!

DARK STARR                                   GHOST                                       “Skeleta”

DR. ABNER MALITY                        ARKHAIIK                                   “Uihtis”

MERCYFUL MIKE                            CORONER                                 “Dissonance Theory”

COLONEL ANGUS                          A-Z                                              “A2Z2”

BOB BURNER                                 HELLOWEEN                              “Giants And Monsters”

LORD RANDALL                             GORLEBEN                                 “Menetekel”

THERON MOORE                           THE RODS                                   “Wild Dogs Unchained”

THOR                                               AGNOSTIC FRONT                     “Echoes In Eternity”

IRON SHEIK                                     PETER CRISS                             “Peter Criss”

OCTOPI MILLS                                FINNR’S CANE                             “Finnr’s Cane”

If you enjoy classic chop socky and whacky foreign horror, you won’t want to miss the next edition of BOB’S BURN PIT! Bob has dug up four classic horrors from the infamous SHAW BROTHERS to put under the microscope. That will be here soon. More major announcements coming soon!

And if the “Best Of” lists aren’t enough for you, here’s the new Torture Chamber, packed with gluten-free lo cal ass-kickery!

ROTTEN SOUND                                         “Mass Extinction” EP

TEMPLE OF VOID                                        “The Crawl”

KREATOR                                                     “Krushers of the World”

JACK HARLON & THE DEAD CROWS       “Inexorable Opposites”

CEMETERY REIGN                                     “Confined In Time”

BLACK SWAN                                             “Paralyzed”

TENEBRO                                                   “Una Lama D’Argento”

VOID PARADIGM                                       “Tout Ira Mieux Sans Nous”

GRAVEWITCH                                            “Gravewitch”

TIME TO GET BLOWN AWAY BY CYCLONE!

The forecast calls for catastrophic winds and brutal destruction here at Wormwood, as CYCLONE has arrived at last! The cult Belgian thrashers are back with a vengeance after being out of commission for almost 35 years! They were one of Europe's great thrash metal bands back in the 80's but bad luck kept them from achieving all they could have. Lead singer GUIDO GEVELS has been there for all of it and DR. MALITY was lucky enough to speak to him about the wild past, current present and promising future of CYCLONE! If you can take massive damage, read all about it HERE!

Next week should see Wormwood's famous TOP 10 LISTS OF 2025 post here, featuring all your favorite idiots ...er,  writers and their picks! Also, we are not done with crazed thrash in these pages, as infamous Dutch thrashpunks VITAMIN X are also on their way here! Look for a steady stream of interesting interviews, features and reports from here on out!

And now the moment you've all been waiting for...this week's Torture Chamber!

TOTAL ANNIHILATION                                “Mountains of Madness”

REDIVIDER                                                   “Sounds of Malice”

DEATH DEALER                                           “Reign Of Steel”

WRECK-DEFY                                              “Dissecting The Leech”

MEGA COLOSSUS                                       “Watch Out!”

FOSSILIZATION                                           “Advent Of Wounds”

DARK STARR REVIEWS 2 WILDLY DIFFERENT HORROR FILMS!

You probably couldn't find two more different films that could still fall under the same genre heading than what DARK STARR is reviewing for us this week! First, he looks at a terrifying found footage film from 2014, "THE TAKING OF DEBORAH LOGAN", which he reckons is one of the most frightening movies he's ever seen...yes, even more than "THE EMOJI MOVIE"! You can find that review HERE! Then he does a 180 and looks at a light-hearted (yet gory) spoof of ED WOOD's films known as "VAMPIRE ZOMBIES FROM SPACE"! This one comes complete with pie plate UFO's, to boot. Read that one HERE!

Many different plans are in play at Wormwood Laboratories and it could result in maybe the most exciting year we've ever had! I hate to keep you humanoids in suspense, but I can't say more until everything is in place. It is more than worth waiting for!

This week's Torture Chamber features MEGADETH's last album, the return of CYCLONE and plenty more!

MEGADETH                                                                "Megadeth"

CYCLONE                                                                   "Known Unto God"

PHASMA                                                                     "Purgatory"

GAVIAL                                                                       "Thanks, I Hate It"

VELMORTH                                                                 "Feral Dominion"

GREYHAWK                                                               "Warriors Of Greyhawk"

WE OPEN THE FORBIDDEN PAGES OF NECRONOMICON EX MORTIS!

As if last week's excruciating visit to the dungeon of ANTAGONIZOR wasn't enough, this week I drove out to a rundown cabin in the middle of the woods to talk to the diabolical MICHAEL BALA of Chicago's rising death fiends NECRONOMICON EX MORTIS! A band obsessed with horror, zombies and forbidden books, they've been blitzing the underground with plenty of thrash-injected death metal! Find out about their horror influences, their fascination with shreddy guitar maestros and their plans for supernatural domination right HERE!

We're all working on some really cool stuff here at the Labs, with BOB BURNER and COLONEL ANGUS especially on the case. We should be spilling the beans on everything pretty soon!

From avant-garde doom to black metal insanity and a symphonic delight, this week’s Torture Chamber has you covered!

BELL WITCH & AERIAL RUIN                         “The Stygian Bough, Volume 2”

GRAVETAKER                                                  “Sheer Lunacy”

BIZARREKULT                                                  “Alt Som Finnes”

BLOODRED                                                     “Colours Of Pain”

NOIRSUAIRE                                                   “The Dragging Poison”

PHENDRANA                                                   “Cathexis”

ENTER THE DARK DUNGEON OF ANTAGONIZÖR!

DR. MALITY returns in a beaten and brutalized state from the Torture Dungeon of Florida's diabolical ANTAGONIZÖR, where he survived an interview with demonic dominatrix SARAH! Wow, this gal is WIRED TO THE MAX! When she's not punishing her helpless Drum Slave MYKEL or invoking Satan, she's tearing up the stage with punky evil speed metal, accompanied by fellow vixen TZU WEI! Sarah reveals many secrets of the band including torture techniques for the Drum Slave, what her Christian mom thinks of her antics and her battles against fascist idelology. This is one of the wildest interviews ever to appear at Wormwood and Doc is still recovering from it. Check it out HERE!

Wormwood Top 10 lists are complete and on the way! Should be up in a few weeks. Also coming to Wormwood: Doc's interview with venerable Belgian thrash masters CYCLONE and their lead singer GUIDO GEVELS! Plus DARK STARR will have some movie reviews of cult films "THE TAKING OF DEBORAH LOGAN" and "VAMPIRE ZOMBIES FROM SPACE"! Aieee, there's plenty of fiendish fun ahead!

And here's this week's Torture Chamber, chock full of magic and mayhem!

KALEIDOBOLT                                                                         "Karakuchi"

VITAMIN X                                                                                "Ride The Apocalypse"

YELLOW EYES                                                                          "Confusion Gate"

BURNING DEATH                                                                    "Burning Death"

LIGATION                                                                                  "After Gods"

TZEVAOT                                                                                  “The Hermetic Way”

KAOSOPHIA                                                                             "Beyond The Black Horizon"

OVERTOUN                                                                              "Death Drive Anthropology"

TERROR CORPSE                                                                      "Ash Eclipses Flesh"

QUEENSRYCHE AND ACCEPT TEAM UP IN HOUSTON!

If it's happenin' in Houston, you know our concrete cowboy COLONEL ANGUS will be on the case! Not long ago, he caught two of metal's all time best in action there and he's here to tell us about it! The show took place at the House of Blues and seemed to be a match made in metallic heaven! We've got plenty of awesome photos like the one above to accompany his write-up, which you can check out HERE!

More news for you Worm-fiends! You already know DR. MALITY is working on an article about Maryland's low budget film legend DON DOHLER. Well, we can tell you now that he got an interview with Don's son GREG DOHLER to really get the inside dope on this DIY movie maestro! Also, all the entries for Wormwood's BEST OF 2025 are now in, so that will be coming up soon. And expect some big time interview news soon!

Here's one of the wildest and woolliest Torture Chambers we've had in a while!

GLUECIFER                                                                      "Same Drug, New High"

EXIMPERITUS                                                                  “Meritoriousness of Equanimity”

SKULL & CROSSBONES                                                 “Time”

QRIXKUOR                                                                       “The Womb of the World”

THE RETICENT                                                                “please”

KARLOFF                                                                         “Revered By Death”

AKTOR TAKES THE STAGE AT WORMWOOD!

This week, we're pleased to welcome one of hard rock/heavy metal's busiest creators to the Chronicles, PROFESSOR CHRIS BLACK! COLONEL ANGUS does the honors of talking to this multi-talented fellow, mostly in connection with his enigmatic band, AKTOR! This hard to define act dives deep into a fictional Nordic universe full of detectives, crooks and mysterious people. What's the story behind the story? The always engaging Prof. tells us all about it HERE!

Things are starting to pick up around here. Dr. Mality went to a forbidden cabin deep in the woods to grab an interview with Chicago's new masters of gory death-thrash, NECRONOMICON EX MORTIS! Expect to read the result here soon. The Doc is also trying to talk to one of Europe's most venerable crossover thrash bands...all will be revealed soon! Plus a lot more is on our plate…

This week's Torture Chamber ranges from a filthy New York beatdown to magnificent neoclassical shred and everything in between!

BIOHAZARD                                                                "Divided We Fall"

AEPHANEMER                                                            "Utopie"

DARKTRIBE                                                                 "Forgotten Reveries"

ECTOVOID                                                                   "In Unreality's Coffin"

AEROSTATION                                                            "Rethink"

DEATH OBVIOUS                                                       "Death Obvious"                                                                                                               

WORMWOOD ENTERS 2026, OUR 28TH YEAR!

It seems like 2025 was the shortest year ever, but here we are already at 2026, ready to begin our 28th year of insanity. We're still getting over New Year's festivities so this week's updates will be brief. But there's already a lot of new stuff on the way. I can confirm grabbing one of my wildest interviews ever with the wild and sadistic SARAH from the rising speed/black metal outfit ANTAGONIZOR! Folks, you'll have to read this one to see how over the top this bunch are! Next week will see us posting COLONEL ANGUS' interview with PROFESSOR BLACK from AKTOR (among many others!) and we'll also have his live review of QUEENSRYCHE and ACCEPT coming up soon. And of course we will have the world famous Wormwood TOP 10 lists for 2025! Even more on the way, but you can see we are pretty busy here!

This week we do have some new Torture Chamber reviews for you...and this bunch is even heavier than usual!

INTERNAL BLEEDING                                                          "Settle All Scores"

BULLET                                                                                  "Kickstarter"

PERDITION TEMPLE                                                             "Malign Apotheosis"

OLDE OUTLIER                                                                      "From Shallow Lives To Shallow Graves"

RED HOT SHAME                                                                  "You Can't Make Me"

BYGONE                                                                                 "Bygone"

ENJOY CHRISTMAS IN OUR VERY OWN TORTURE CHAMBER!

After a year full of debauchery and mayhem, we'll be taking a bit of a break over the Yuletide holidays here at Wormwood Laboratories. Believe me, it can be very strenuous thinking up new scientific abominations and insults to Nature. However, we are not totally in a food-induced coma...we still have an edition of our world famous Torture Chamber for you to immerse yourself in. Before I whip out the victims, I wanted to let you know that our boy COLONEL ANGUS has been especially busy at the end of the year. In addition to conducting an interview with the curious band AKTOR , he will be a giving a live review of a recent QUEENSRYCHE/ACCEPT show in Houston as well. Many other things are in the pipe!

Without further hoodoo, here's the last Torture Chamber of 2025!

IRON VOID/ ORODRUIN                                                            "Altar Of Worship" Split

GASKET                                                                                        "Gasket"

FROZEN LAND                                                                            "Icemelter"

NECRONOMICON EX MORTIS                                                 "Zombie Blood Nightmare"

FAUN                                                                                           "Hex"

VOIDCEREMONY                                                                       "Abditum"

MEZZIN' AROUND WITH MEZZROW!

This week, DR. MALITY gets to speak to some true veterans of the Swedish metal scene, the mighty MEZZROW! These thrashers have been banging heads since the earliest days of the extreme music scene and they are arguably better in 2025 than back in the 80's! We speak to singer UFFE PETTERSSON about the long and winding road of MEZZROW as well as their scorching new album, "Embrace The Awakening".Past, present and future collide HERE for all to read!

Just a few notes. The next couple of weeks will find us in the Yuletide season and so things will be a bit slower than usual here. We still should have some Torture Chamber updates, but the real fun will wait for the new year. I can confirm that COLONEL ANGUS has an interview with hard to describe "spy metal" band AKTOR and their mercurial frontman, PROF. CHRIS BLACK. And I will be doing a new Philm Phreaks article about maverick Maryland film-maker DON DOHLER and his numerous creations!

Our Torture Chamber this week covers an awful lot of ground…

MAUSOLEUM GATE                                                                    "Space, Rituals, and Magick"

COLD STEEL                                                                                 "Discipline and Punish"

PROFANE ELEGY                                                                          "Herezjarcha"

TRIBAL GAZE                                                                                 "Inveighing Brilliance"

DARVAZA                                                                                       "We Are Him"

ATOMIC ROOSTER                                                                       "Circle The Sun"

BRETWALDAS OF HEATHEN DOOM                                          "Seven Bloodied Ramparts"

MY DARKEST HATE                                                                       "Rust And Bones"

STRUCK A NERVE                                                                          "Struck A Nerve"

DARE TO ENTER THE DEPTHS OF THE TSARICHINA PIT!

Once again it's time to dive deep into an ocean of mystery with a new edition of THE WORMWOOD FILES! This time our journey takes us to a remote corner of rural Bulgaria, home to perhaps the most enigmatic place in the world, the TSARICHINA PIT! This was an ancient underground cave said to be the home of supernatural knowledge and power. The Bulgarian army dug into it, ventured into the Pit...and then retreated, covering the entrance with concrete and hiding the truth of what happened behind a veil of secrecy. Did the soldiers find an ancient UFO complete with alien pilot? Or some kind of extradimensional entity trapped in the rock? Only speculation remains. Now it's time for Wormwood to investigate...read more HERE!

As usual, our Torture Chamber this week is full of a multitude of genres, from New York hardcore to Gothic doom to classic metal!

AGNOSTIC FRONT                                                                    "Echoes In Eternity"

PHOBOCOSM                                                                            "Gateway"

NOVEMBRE                                                                                "Words Of Indigo"

HYPERION                                                                                  "Cybergenesis"

STARLIGHT RITUAL                                                                   "Rogue Angels"

NIGHT TERROR                                                                         "Return Of The Witches"

CRIMSON GLORY LIVE IN HOUSTON!

Wormwood's Texas operative COLONEL ANGUS has access to a ton of cool shows in the Lone Star State. This time around, he brings us a report on the triumphant return of prog/power metal legends CRIMSON GLORY to the live stage. These guys were tantalizingly close to making it big time in the late 80's/early 90's. How did their new singer TRAVIS WILLIS fit in as a replacement for the late great MIDNIGHT? What classic CRIMSON GLORY tunes were on the menu? And how did it all sound? Only one way to find out...click HERE!

December brings us to the end of another year. We're already working on some really cool stuff for 2026, including our infamous TOP 10 lists as well as a whole passel of interviews, film articles and more! The end of the month might be a little sparse, but we'll be back with a bang in 2026!

Now for a super loaded edition of the Torture Chamber!

SANGUISUGABOGG                                                                "Hideous Aftermath"

1914                                                                                           "Viribus Unitis"

CREATURES                                                                               "Creatures II"

OMNIUM GATHERUM                                                             "May The Bridges We Burn Light The Way"

SACRED LEATHER                                                                     "Keep The Fire Burning"

AKOLYTH                                                                                    "Ecstatic Kingdom"

CHAIRMAKER                                                                             "Leviathan Carcass"

YEAH, SICK!                                                                                 "Your Herbs And Spices Won't Save You Now!"

HERALDIC BLAZE                                                                       "Monument Of Will"

AN OBSCURE INTERROGATION OF HOODED MENACE!

Take a journey into the fetid crypts of the Templars this week as we talk to Finland's grisly purveyors of doom, HOODED MENACE! I talk to founding member LASSE PYKKO without the aid of a Ouija Board as we delve into the mysteries of the latest HM album, "Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration". This one is a bit of a departure for the blind ghouls, so read all about it HERE!

Happy Thanksgiving to all this week! This upcoming week will see less of an update from us, if we have any at all. But we will be back in force soon with a live report on CRIMSON GLORY and a double sized Torture Chamber!

Speaking of which, we've got a good one this week, with CATHEDRAL, ENTHRONED and more for your perusal…

CATHEDRAL                                                             "Society's Pact With Satan"

MEZZROW                                                                "Embrace The Awakening"

AKTOR                                                                       "Professori (Season 2)"

BLINDFOLDED AND LED TO THE WOODS          "The Hardest Thing About Being God is That No One Believes Me"

ENTHRONED                                                            "Ashspawn"

SCORCHING TOMB                                                 "Ossuary"

INSIDE THE WORLD OF CEA SERIN!

This week, COLONEL ANGUS investigates one of progressive metal's best kept secrets, Louisiana's CEA SERIN! This band seems to put out a record once every 10 years, but the quality of each record is so outstanding, each release makes a big splash. The newest CEA SERIN is "The World Outside" and Angus talks to mastermind JAY LAMM about why it took so long for this one to manifest itself. Jay gives some really detailed and informative answers, so you'll get a really good look inside CEA SERIN HERE!

Should have some important announcements for you all soon!

The Torture Chamber this week has some pretty dark and disturbing entries…

HELL IN THE CLUB                                    "Joker In The Pack"

CORONER                                                   "Dissonance Theory"

STELLAR CIRCUITS                                     "Phantom::Phoenix"

WITHERING SOUL                                     "Passage Of The Arcane"

MORBIKON                                                 "Lost In The Astral Crypts"

LAMP OF MURMUUR                                "The Dreaming Prince In Ecstasy"

TRIPLE THE INSANITY WITH BOB'S BURN PIT #3!

Pizza-loving pyromaniac BOB BURNER is back in action with the latest BURN PIT! He's got three wildly different cult films for us to take a look at this time around. First off, the craziest might be the delirious Indonesian sword-and-sorcery epic THE DEVIL'S SWORD featuring some of the nuttiest martial arts battles ever committed to film. Then we take a sharp left turn to look at a quiet classic of 70's dark thrillers, THE LITTLE GIRL WHO LIVES DOWN THE LANE, featuring a young and dangerous JODIE FOSTER dodging the creepy attentions of MARTIN SHEEN! Finally, we finish things off with an overlooked 80's rural thriller SHALLOW GRAVE, where a deranged sherriff hunts four horny college girls! Bob's got it all for you right HERE!

Got six new victims in the Wormwood Torture Chamber for you to check out!

BARREN PATH                                              "Grieving"

KARATE STEVE                                              "Time Under Tension"

SINTAGE                                                        "Unbound Triumph"

VALDUR                                                         "Guilded Abyss"

GORLEBEN                                                    "Menetekel"

DEPRAVITY                                                   "Bestial Possession"

FEEL THE WRATH OF WARBRINGER!

Make sure your neck brace is firmly attached as we dive into the wild world of WARBRINGER this week! During their appearance at the BLADES OF STEEL fest this year, I was able to interview long time singer JOHN KEVILL and the result was most superior! It was a wide ranging chat that covered the history of the band, their new album "Wrath And Ruin" and a number of stimulating social topics. So dive in HERE for one of the best interviews of the year!

On the news front, our busy Texas correspondent COLONEL ANGUS just caught a live performance by CRIMSON GLORY in Houston and will have a report for us soon, with lots of his great pics. And I also managed to grab another interview, this time with Sweden's long-running thrashers MEZZROW! Keep watching for that as well!

Got a double-barrelled shotgun blast of a Torture Chamber for you this week!

SADISTIC FORCE                                                "Morbid Odyssey"

HOODED MENACE                                            "Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration"

REVELATOR                                                        "Light The Devil's Fire"

SKULL REVENGE                                                "State Of Oblivion"

THAUMATURGY                                                 "Pestilential Hymns"

DOME RUNNER                                                 "World Panopticon"

DYING REMAINS                                               "Merciless Suffering"

SPEEDCLAW                                                       "Stardust"

UNSOULING                                                      "Outward Streams Of Devotional Woe"

JUST IN TIME FOR HALLOWEEN: CABIN FEVER AND THE RETURN OF DRACULA!

All Hallow's Eve is almost upon us! And in celebration of that unholy night, DARK STARR turns his attention to a couple of very different yet effective horror films! First up is his look at Eli Roth's gory body horror comedy "CABIN FEVER" from 2002. You wanna talk about a bad skin condition, this movie is the last word on that subject! Read all about it HERE! Then we travel back to 1958 to look at a unique and underappreciated vampire film, "THE RETURN OF DRACULA"! This movie finds the Count leaving Communist Transylvania and moving to suburban California. Get the lowdown on this one right HERE!

Hope to have some news about interesting new features coming soon!

Here's a big orange edition of the Torture Chamber!

BLIZARO                                                   "Light And Desolation"

ORBIT CULTURE                                      "Death Above Life"

RAGE                                                         "A New World Rising"

KOSTNATENI                                            "Přílišnost"

MILE MARKER ZERO                                "Coming Of Age"

ABOMINATOR                                          "The Fire Brethren'

A HISTORY LESSON FROM NILS PATRIK JOHANSSON!

One of the great voices of European metal is Sweden's NILS PATRIK JOHANSSON. Perhaps best known as lead singer of ASTRAL DOORS, he is also in WUTHERING HEIGHTS, LION'S SHARE and RIFFORIA, as well as doing his own solo albums. Well, none other than COLONEL ANGUS recently grabbed an interview with this golden-throated frontman! Nils' new album "War And Peace" deals with world history, a favorite subject for the singer. So naturally that topic came up in the discussion. Get educated right HERE!

This week we feature another massive edition of the Torture Chamber, with the likes of TESTAMENT, DEAD HEAT and FM along for the ride!

DEAD HEAT                                              "Process Of Elimination"

TESTAMENT                                             "Para Bellum"

SWEET SAVAGE                                       "Bang"

BINAH                                                      "Onkos"

RAUHNACHT                                           "Zwischenwelten"

GRAVERIPPER                                         "From Welkin To Tundra"

FM                                                            "Brotherhood"

REDSHARK                                              "Sudden Impact"

GAWTHROP                                            "Kuboa"

LIVE REVIEWS FOR BLADES OF STEEL AND MICHAEL SCHENKER!

It's harvest season and we've got a bountiful crop of live concert reviews here at Wormwood! First, it's our long awaited look at the latest edtion of BLADES OF STEEL! This year's three day fest featured the messy mayhem of BELUSHI SPEED BALL, the long awaited arrival of SATAN, and names like WARBRINGER and INCANTATION! Plus DR. MALITY ejected from the building! Find out more HERE! And for a special treat, we've got COLONEL ANGUS' look at a Houston show featuring the legendary MICHAEL SCHENKER as well as ARMORED SAINT! Lots of cool pics as well. Check it out HERE!

Speaking of the Colonel, he has sure been busy! He also found time to interview the rising prog metal band CEA SERIN and creator JAY LAMM! Coming soon to Wormwood! And also look for DARK STARR's reviews of two wildly different horror films...2002's comical gorefest "CABIN FEVER" and 1958's underrated vampire tale "THE RETURN OF DRACULA"! And more on the way!

A double sized edition of the Torture Chamber featuring more MICHAEL SCHENKER as well as HELSTAR and THE RESIDENTS...

MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP                                  "Don't Sell Your Soul"

HELSTAR                                                                     "The Devil's Masquerade"

PREDECEASED                                                           "Weirdo Riffers"

ARSON CHARGE                                                        "A Dying Light"

WARRANT (Ger.)                                                        "The Speed Of Metal"

THE RESIDENTS                                                         "Doctor Dark"

FALLING LEAVES                                                        "The Silence That Binds Us"

AGENBITE MISERY                                                     "The Remorse of Conscience"

PSYCHO FRAME                                                         "Salvation Laughs In the Face of a Grieving Mother"                                                     

STEP INTO THE WORLD OF NEFARIOUS!

Many times, the term "supergroup" is badly misused, but not in the case of NEFARIOUS! This Bay Area metal band is not just a tribute to the great thrash metal of old, but actually contains some of the players who made that genre what it is. Like RICK HUNOLT formerly of EXODUS, WILL CARROLL of DEATH ANGEL, KATON DEPENA of HIRAX, TOM GEARS OF BLIND ILLUSION and the man I was honored to talk to for this interview, DOUG PIERCY of HEATHEN! Those are heavy names to conjure with and NEFARIOUS has lived up to their legacy by releasing one of the year's best thrash metal albums, "Addicted To Power"! Get the lowdown on this killer band that is both old and new HERE!

Things are falling into place on a number of other fronts. Look for an interview with death/doom Templars HOODED MENACE and their frontman LASSE PYKKO coming soon. Other interviews are in the works and we'll have more to say about them soon. Also look for more live concert coverage and movie reviews!

This week's Torture Chamber boasts classic names like TODAY IS THE DAY, PARADISE LOST and SARGEIST so dig in…

TODAY IS THE DAY                                          "Never Give In"

AMBUSH                                                           "Evil In All Dimensions"

PARADISE LOST                                                "Ascension"

SARGEIST                                                          "Flame Within Flame"

NOW I'VE DONE IT                                           "An Ill Guest"

CEA SERIN                                                         "The World Outside"

ENTER A DARK REALM OF DEMENTIA!

We take a walk on the wild side this week at Wormwood...a journey into the seediest underbelly of the urban jungle. It's an in-depth look at the unique and cruelly forgotten film "DEMENTIA", a film noir nightmare of surreal darkness that was way ahead of its time! It tells the story of a ruthless young lady's voyage into a world of murder and depravity. If you've never heard of this one, now is the time to catch up with "Dementia" right HERE!

We're working on a number of projects including some new live concert reviews, interviews and the next edition of the Wormwood Files! Details to follow! 

An extra big chunk of auditory insanity awaits in this week's Torture Chamber...

ABRADED                                              "Ethereal Emanations of Cthonic Caries"

CASTLE RAT                                           "The Bestiary"

STRANGERS                                           "Boundless"

DARKNESS                                             "The Death Squad Chronicles"

NILS PATRIK JOHANSSON                    "War And Peace"

PERISHING                                             "Malicious Acropolis Unveiled"

SPEED QUEEN                                       "With A Bang!"

HADOPELAGYAL                                    "Haematophoryktos"

ARKAEON                                                "Når Bjerge Bliver til StØy"

DOOM CULT COMMANDO                  "Das Erwachen der Schlange"

VIKING SPIRIT IS UNLEASHED AT WORMWOOD!

The berserker metal legions of UNLEASHED return to Wormwood Laboratories this week as DR. MALITY speaks to the voice of the band, JOHNNY HEDLUND! Johnny has been hoisting the flagon for classic Swedish death metal for over 35 years now and very few know more about the subject than him. The new UNLEASHED album "Fire Upon Your Lands" continues the proud Viking attack against the weaklings of the White Christ and holds true to everything the band stands for. We have a great conversation about what makes the band tick and what keeps them so strong and consistent throughout the years. Grab your own tankard of mead and find out more HERE!

Coming to Wormwood soon will another great voice of Scandinavian metal, NILS PATRIK JOHANSSON! COLONEL ANGUS has grabbed a talk with the great vocalist, which you will be able to read here soon. Working on some other choice features as we speak...

This week's Torture Chamber ranges from tastefully tuneful to hideously grotesque!

WYTCH HAZEL                                                 "V: Lamentations"

HEADLESS                                                        "Transitional Objects"

LAST RETCH                                                      "Abject Cruelty"

SÖLICITÖR                                                         "Enemy In Mirrors"

COSMIC REAPER                                               "Bleed The Wicked, Drown The Damned"

TRICK OR TREAT                                               "Ghosted"

AN INTERVIEW FROM A TO Z WITH DRUM GREAT MARK ZONDER!

MARK ZONDER is universally acclaimed as one of the best drummers in heavy metal and hard rock. He's been involved with numerous projects over the years, but one of the most notable is the progressive hard rock outfit A-Z, where's partnered with vocalist extraordinaire RAY ALDER. Longtime fan COLONEL ANGUS was able to catch with Mark to talk to him about A-Z as well as the legendary WARLORD, the other band he's most associated with. Connect with that chat right HERE!

Got an extra big Torture Chamber for you this week, with all sorts of sounds to dive into...

NOVEMBER'S DOOM                                                "Major Arcana"

CONDITION CRITICAL                                              "Degeneration Chamber"

MADHOUSE                                                              "Plead The Fifth"

INTERCOURSE                                                           "How I Fell In Love With The Void"

VISITANT                                                                     "Rubidium"

FINNR'S CANE                                                            "Finnr's Cane"

HERUVIM                                                                     "Mercator"

HOLD ME DOWN                                                        "Devour"

ACROLYSIS                                                                  "Intoxicator"

A TASTE OF SPANISH FIRE FROM IMPUREZA!

Time for us to take a trip to the darkly romantic land of Spain to meet IMPUREZA, one of the more unusual bands you are likely to encounter. Although headquartered in France, the band is obsessed with the history and mythology of Spain, which they relate through their music: a combination of traditional flamenco influences and brutal death metal. It sounds crazy but it works perfectly on the new IMPUREZA album "Alcazares". I talk to guitar maestro LIONEL "CANO" MUNOZ about the origin of the band and their devotion to the darker sides of Spain. Come along and learn more HERE!

This week's Torture Chamber is packed with cool bands both notorious and cryptic!

THE RODS                                               "Wild Dogs Unchained"

ARKHAAIK                                               "Uihtis"

KATATONIA                                            "Nightmares as an Extension of the Waking State"

DESASTER                                               "Kill All Idols"

PALANTYR                                               "The Ascension and the Hunger"

SYRINX                                                     "Time Out Of Place"

NEW TORTURE CHAMBER AND SOME CHOICE NEWS...

Due to my attendance at the BLADES OF STEEL FEST in Madison, WI, this was a pretty sparse week for Wormwood updates. However, we did manage to get you a new Torture Chamber featuring pithy reviews for bands like PARADOX, DEATHHAMMER, SHOCK NARCOTIC and more. You can find the links below!

In addition to a full write up on the event, I'm also pleased as punch to announce that I grabbed a face to face interview with John Kevill from thrash masters WARBRINGER! This one will be well worth waiting for! I'm also working on another interview with one of the fastest rising bands in the scene. More info to come!

And now, here's the aforementioned Torture Chamber....

SHOCK NARCOTIC                                                 "My Flesh Is Afraid But I Am Not"

DEATHHAMMER                                                    "Crimson Dawn"

PARADOX                                                               "Mysterium"

CRONOS COMPULSION                                       "Lawgiver"

KRIGSGRAV                                                            "Stormcaller"

INNUMERABLE FORMS                                       "Pain Efflugence"

THE WICKER MAN AND HORROR HIGH GET A LOOK!

This week, a couple of weird thrillers get a look as only Wormwood Chronicles can do it! THE WICKER MAN is the 1973 folk horror classic that hardly needs an introduction...but our boy DARK STARR never saw it until he did this review! So we'll look at it in a fresh way, from a first time perspective. See what he said about it HERE! Then we get much closer to modern times for a review of the "wholesome horror" HORROR HIGH, about a strange school where tardiness is punished by DEATH! That's almost as strict as my old alma mater! See if this one is worth a look HERE!

A special note! This weekend I plan on attending the BLADES OF STEEL Metalfest in Madison, WI so we may have less of an update here than usual. I still hope to at least get a new Torture Chamber up if I can. It will be worth it,because not only will I be reviewing the entire 3 day fest but I should be getting an interview with one of the headlining bands. Who is it? You'll find out next week!

Speaking of the Torture Chamber, this might just be the most jam-packed edition of the year so far!

SINSAENUM                                                  "In Devastation"

UNLEASHED                                                  "Fire Upon Your Lands"

GLENN HUGHES                                            "Chosen"

DEGRAVE                                                         "Metalithic"

PRIMAL FEAR                                                  "Domination"

DER WEG EINER FREIHEIT                             "Innern"

FERMENTO                                                      "Acts Of Blood"

BLIND EQUATION                                          "A Funeral In Purgatory"

DEMIURGON                                                  "Miasmatic Deathless Chamber"

BEHOLD THE COSMIC POWER OF OLD MACHINES!

Wormwood takes a trip to the furthest reaches of the galaxy to encounter the might of OLD MACHINES! This Canadian-American federation uses extreme symphonic metal to tell the story of god-like A.I.'s that arise every million years to wipe out the empires of organic beings. Now they've turned their sights on Earth...and OLD MACHINES are here to tell the tale. It may be the most epic concept ever related by a metal band. I talk to keyboardist/lyricist JASON STARES about the origin of both the band and the story. It's an eye-opening revelation you can sample HERE!

More news from Wormwood Labs! COLONEL ANGUS has acquired an interview with the renowned drummer MARK ZONDER, best known for his work in FATES WARNING and WARLORD, but here more concerned with the new prog metal powerhouse A-Z! Something to look forward to! Plus, I can tell you that the next Wormwood Files will be dedicated to the outrageous story of Bulgaria's TSARICHINA HOLE...perhaps the most mysterious "forbidden zone" in paranormal history!

The Torture Chamber this week is a great mix of melody and mayhem!

MOB RULES                                                "Rise of the Ruler"

AZURE EMOTE                                            "Cryptic Aura"

ASHES OF ARES                                          "New Messiahs"

MALTHUSIAN                                             "The Summoning Bell"

ANCHORITE                                                 "Realm of Ruin"

HARVESTED                                                 "Dysthymia"

WE CHECK OUT THE ACTION AT STORMBRINGER FEST!

The one and only BOB BURNER recently attended the very last edition of STORMBRINGER FEST in Massachusetts...a smaller scale but hard-charging event devoted to the best of America's true metal underground. Bands this year included TWISTED TOWER DIRE, ADAMANTIS, OWLBEAR, and plenty more. Bob got his nose out of the pizza box long enough to snap some great pictures as well. Get the lowdown on this excellent Metalfest HERE...and don't forget to support the underground!

Got some great news today! I bagged an interview with one of the OG's of the Swedish death metal scene, the unholy UNLEASHED! I talked to head Viking JOHNNY HEDLUND about everything going on in the mystic land of Odalheim! First time in over 10 years we've talked to them. Lots more news is coming soon!

Got a pretty well rounded Torture Chamber this time around, with AMORPHIS and more!

BASK                                                         "The Turning"

AMORPHIS                                               "Borderland"

BLACK MAJESTY                                      "Oceans Of Black"

CLAIRVOYANCE                                       "Chasm Of Immurement"

FIRSTBORNE                                             "Lucky"

VINDICATOR                                             "Whispers Of Death"

MOUTH OF MADNESS                             "Event Horizon"

HIBERNAUT                                               "Obsidian Eye"

WEEPING SORES                                      "The Convalescence Agonies"

WE PAY TRIBUTE TO HARDCORE ICON SABU!

It's been way too long since we've done something rooted in the rasslin' world, but this new article is a sad one. The homicidal, suicidal, genocidal maniac SABU has left us after a lifetime of mayhem. So it's time to pay tribute to the man who brought blood, violence and a million broken tables back to pro wrestling. I take a close look at his career, including his relation to the legendary SHEIK, his time in Japan, his unforgettable and ground-breaking run in ECW and his troubled final days, including his last match held just weeks before his death. Point your finger to the sky and read more HERE!

Trying hard to come up with some great new content and should have news to report soon!

The Torture Chamber this week features the immortal HELLOWEEN and a bunch of gnarly bands!

HELLOWEEN                                                         "Giants And Monsters"

BLACK MAGNET                                                   "Megamantra"

BLOODLETTER                                                     "Leave The Light Behind"

REBURIED                                                              "Flesh Mourning"

CANCER VOID                                                        "First Metastasis"

GRAVE SPEAKER                                                   "Rays of the Emerald Sun"

FALL UNDER A PHANTOM SPELL...

This time around, COLONEL ANGUS ushers us into a fantastic world that feels like a trip into the past. He interviews KYLE McNEILL, the guiding force of PHANTOM SPELL, a band that mixes the best of 70's progressive rock and early 80's heavy metal. Kyle has plenty to say about how he puts PHANTOM SPELL's enchanting tunes together, as well as his influences and even some info concerning his other major band, SEVEN SISTERS. The new PS album "Hearth and Heather" is attracting a ton of interest, so hop aboard HERE

Lots of good stuff coming up soon, including interviews with IMPUREZA, NEFARIOUS and OLD MACHINES, as well as a report on the excellent STORMBRINGER Metalfest and more articles on freaky films and a look at the late wrestler SABU. Plus the usual madness of the Torture Chamber!

Speaking of which, here's the latest Chamber, featuring Nepalese grindcore, classic California thrash, cosplay power metal and a whole bunch more!

CHEPANG                                                              "Jhyappa"

NEFARIOUS                                                           "Addicted To Power"

WARKINGS                                                            "Armageddon"

COLTSBLOOD                                                      "Obscured Into Nebulous Dusk"

NAMEBEARER                                                      "Industries of the Fading Sun"

VIOGRESSION                                                      "Thaumaturgic Veil"!

THE SCARRED STORY OF PATCHWORK!

We keep things close to home for this week's major offering. PATCHWORK are a gritty and hard-working band from the gritty and hard-working home of Wormwood, Rockford, IL! They've just released their second album "Scars", which is one of the best things to come out of this burg. DR. MALITY hooked up with drummer DAVE CARUANA at a local dive to get the story on this band, including the tragic loss of guitarist MARK SHEETS to cancer. Dave and I have a great chat, talking about the glory days of Rockford music, a shared love of RUSH and the many adversities the band had to face to make it this far. A very differend kind of interview, which you can sample HERE!

DARK STARR will have movie reviews of the cult classic "THE WICKER MAN" from 1973 and the much more recent "wholesome" "HORROR HIGH" coming up soon while the Good Doctor will have a writeup on the avant-garde film noir nightmare "DEMENTIA" from 1955. And there will be some more interviews coming up real soon!

Here is one of the nuttiest and most far ranging Torture Chambers we've ever posted here!

BRIGHT SUNSHINE                                      "Executive Power Supreme"

SIGH                                                               "I Saw The World's End" (Hangman's Hymn MMXXV)

THE CRYSTAL TEARDROP                            "...Is Forming"

PLASMODULATED                                        "An Ocean Ov Putrid, Stinking, Vile, Disgusting Hell"

TEMPTRESS                                                    "Catch The Endless Dawn"

CELESTIAL WIZARD                                       "Regenesis"

THE CHRIS ROLLING SQUAD                       "Damn You All To...Hell"

FRYKTELIG STØY                                            "Incandescent"

MUTANT SEX DEMON                                   "Cutting Through"

BOB'S BURN PIT IS BACK WITH MORE MOVIE MAYHEM!

 Our buddy BOB BURNER is back and loaded for bear this week! It's the second edition of BOB'S BURN PIT and this time Bob looks at three films from the golden age of VHS. "THE ABOMINATION" is a crazy movie featuring living tumors, evil preachers and a narrator that may be nuts. "THE MUTILATOR" is a classic slasher featured a whacked-out Dad out to kill his son and friends. And "BLOOD SALVAGE" is an overlooked film about Crazy Jake's "body shop", where more than just cars are getting torn apart. Join the fun right HERE!

Things are popping at Wormwood Laboratories! I got an interview with DOUG PIERCY, a legend in the Bay Area thrash metal scene, about his new superstar band NEFARIOUS that also features RICK HUNOLT formerly of EXODUS and KATON DEPENA of HIRAX! That one's a smoker! And COLONEL ANGUS broke bread with KYLE O'NEILL, the mind behind exciting new band PHANTOM SPELL, which combines the best of 70's prog and early metal! Plus DARK STARR has got even more psychotronic movie stuff lined up and Im thinking about my own contribution to Philm Phreaks…

In this edition of the Torture Chamber, our reviews are sharper and more pointed than usual.…

CHANGELING                                                      "Changeling"

SODOM.                                                               "The Arsonist"

A-Z                                                                         "A2Z2"

IN THE COMPANY OF SERPENTS                   " A Crack In Everything"

DARK CHAPEL                                                    "Spirit In The Glass"

EXECUTIONIST                                                   "Sacraments Of The Sick"

A RUNDOWN OF MILWAUKEE METALFEST 2025!

Yessiree, Bob, it's time for our annual look at the biggest headbanging hobnob in the Midwest, the MILWAUKEE METALFEST! This year's edition sported names like EXODUS, ENSLAVED, DOWN, ROTTING CHRIST and DEMOLITION HAMMER...and tons more! DR. ABNER MALITY and THERON MOORE take a detailed look at the first two days of the Fest and include plenty of exclusive pics! Who raged and who came up short? Find out HERE!

Lots of irons in the fire currently! The Good Doctor hopes to have a couple more interview in the bag soon and COLONEL ANGUS promises some new ones as well. Plus cult movie reviews by BOB BURNER and DARK STARR as well as Doc's look at the career of hardcore wrestling icon SABU, may he rest in peace!

As usual, our Torture Chamber is crazier than a weasel on paint fumes!

PHANTOM SPELL                                            "Hearth and Heather"

OLD MACHINES                                              "The Cycle of Extinction"

FER DE LANCE                                                 "Fires On the Mountainside"

DRAWN AND QUARTERED                            "Lord of Two Horns"

AFFLICTION VECTOR                                      "Contra Hominem"

BACON WAGON                                              "Trauma Cake"

BLOOD VULTURE                                            "Die Close"

DISEMBODIMENT                                           "Spiral Crypts"

GRACELESS                                                      "Icons of Ruin"

GET BLUDGEONED BY BEAR MACE!

Emerging from the rugged streets of Chicago is BEAR MACE, a band as blunt and brutal as their name. These dudes have been chugging out some rough and ready death metal in the vein of BOLT THROWER, CIANIDE and OBITUARY for years now, but their current album "Slaves Of The Wolf" might be their best yet. I talk to guitarist MARK SUGAR and drummer GARRY NAPLES about the steady upward march of the band and what they've got planned for the future! Strap on your flak jacket and find out more HERE!

Things are brewing at Wormwood Laboratories! The pizza nerd BOB BURNER will soon be back with the second edition of his BURN PIT! This time BOB looks at some cult movie atrocities: "THE ABOMINATION", "THE MUTILATOR" and "BLOOD SALVAGE"! That's not all! He's also gonna have a report on the STORMBRINGER Metalfest, which he attended with his worst enemy, the No Fun Shogun, RANDY KASTNER! As for the Good Doctor, I've got an interview with the symphonic sci-fi black metal band OLD MACHINES which I can tell you is cool as hell! Plus COLONEL ANGUS is working on some stuff I should have more info about soon!

Pirates, evil conquistadors and atomic witches infest this week's edition of the Torture Chamber!

CROMLECH                                               "Of Owls And Eels"

IMPUREZA                                                 "Alcazares"

ALESTORM                                                "The Thunderfist Chronicles"

ATOMIC WITCH                                         "Death Etiquette"

CIRCU5                                                       "Clockwork Tulpa"

ENTHEOMORPHOSIS                               "Pyha Kuilu"

THE RETURN OF DON OF THE DEAD!

Once more, the diabolical DON OF THE DEAD graces us with his infernal presence. The frontman from Cleveland's death metal lunatics NUNSLAUGHTER is no stranger to the pages of Wormwood, but this time, THERON MOORE has asked him some very personal questions that dig into the man behind the myth. Did Don have a Christian upbringing? Did he ever actively worship the Devil? What does his family think of his sinister antics? You can get the answer to all of these questions HERE!

An extra large and juicy Torture Chamber is available for your perusal as well!

KING WITCH                                                       "III"

KING PARROT                                                    "A Young Person's Guide To King Parrot"

CHRIS CAFFERY                                                  "20 Years Of The Music Man"

HOLLOW LEG                                                     "Dust And Echoes"

HAXPROCESS                                                      "Beyond What The Eyes Can See"

JASON BLAKE                                                      "A Confusion Sequence"

GROTESQUE BLISS                                            "Grotesque Bliss"

SHROUDED IN DARKNESS                               "11:11"

MORBYDA                                                          "Under The Spell"

THE CHEAP AND CRAZY WORLD OF LARRY BUCHANAN!

This week's Philm Phreaks article is long overdue! We've paid tribute to many maverick directors of low budget goodness here, but we've never gotten around to Texas' LARRY BUCHANAN...until now! I take a really close look at the prolific career of the cut-rate maestro and such iconic films as "THE TRIAL OF LEE HARVEY OSWALD", "ZONTAR: THE THING FROM VENUS" and 'GOODBYE, NORMA JEAN". I found out a lot about Larry when putting this together and his actual story is kind of inspiring. Check it out HERE!

We should have another "Burn Pit" from BOB BURNER pretty soon, as well as interviewswith BEAR MACE, NUNSLAUGHTER and more! Should have some more big news pretty soon and also our look at MILWAUKEE METALFEST 2025!

It's time to welcome another new writer to Wormwood Laboratories. Say hello to MERCYFUL MIKE, who graces us with his first effort, a review of ECHOSOUL, in this week's Torture Chamber!

ECHOSOUL                                                         "Time Of The Dragon"

INCITE                                                                  "Savage New Times"

PUTRIDITY                                                           "Morbid Ataraxia"

NAMTARU                                                           "Cult of Ancient Deities"

SHED THE SKIN                                                 "The Carnage Casts Shadows"

SONS OF RA                                                       "Standard Deviation"

SEVERED ANGEL DESCENDS FROM THE HEAVENS!

COLONEL ANGUS recently sought angelic help for a crisis of faith and his plea was answered by SEVERED ANGEL! Those praying for heavy metal with class will surely find their prayers answered by this L.A. band. Their new album "When Eternity Ends" brings forth a melodic mix of QUEENSRYCHE, HELLOWEEN and ARMORED SAINT vibes. Drummer WAYNE NOON tells Angus all about the genesis of both the band and the album, along with other salient facts. Mr. Noon wound up being a very well-spoken example of the skin-beating breed. Hear what he has to say HERE!

On the new interview front, I can tell you that I will have a chat with the unique Spanish/French unit IMPUREZA and their guitarist LIONEL MUNOZ soon. Ever hear a mix of fiery flamenco guitar and grisly death metal before? You will when you hear these guys! Coming soon to WC!

A bigger than usual Torture Chamber yields an extremely interesting mix of bands!

HELMS DEEP                                              "Chasing The Dragon"

TEITANBLOOD                                           "From the Visceral Abyss"

MACHINE HEAD                                         “UnatØned"

WALKING BOMBS                                      "Blessings Bestrewn Part 1"

DROUTH                                                      "The Teeth of Time"

TOKYO BLADE                                             "Time Is The Fire"

ANCIENT DEATH                                          "Ego Dissolution"

IMMINENT SONIC DESTRUCTION             "Floodgate"

EYES                                                               "Spinner"

WORMWOOD IS HAUNTED BY PHANTOM!

Ghosts and all creatures of the night are welcome at Wormwood, so asking Mexico's PHANTOM for an interview was a no-brainer. These ghouls from Guadalajara are an exciting new force on the metal scene, specializing in brain-melting speed metal of the best vintage kind! I contacted guitarist/vocalist J.C. NECROHEX via Ouija board and asked him about the band's origin and its many oldschool influences that they've mixed together so well. Pick up their new album "Tyrants of Wrath" to hear what they're about and read the interview HERE!

Working on some stuff for later appearance here! Think I will do a biography of the recently departed hardcore wrestling legend SABU, which will be the first wrestling article we've done in more than two years. Also trying to connect for some interviews. Also want to say the first contribution by new member MERCYFUL MIKE should be right around the corner!

This week's Torture Chamber is strange even by the extreme standards we've established here!

LOVE/ HATE                                                    "Punk Rock Fiesta!"

VARIOUS ARTISTS                                          "Yeah, Man, It's Bloody Heavy!"

MIDNIGHT                                                       "Steel, Rust and Disgust"

EMPLOYED TO SERVE                                    "Fallen Star"

AITTALA                                                           "Machines"

HATE                                                               "Bellum Regiis"

A MASSIVE REVIEW OF HELL'S HEROES 2025!

Our Concrete Cowboy in Houston, COLONEL ANGUS, should get some kind of award for his coverage of the awesome HELL'S HEROES 2025 fest. He managed to cover every single band that played the fest over four days! Holy cats! That stellar lineup includes bands like SAXON, CRIMSON GLORY, ABBATH, HIRAX, NASTY SAVAGE, HELSTAR and many, many more. Angus write-up on this killer fest can be found HERE, along with tons of exclusive photos! That boy needs a vacation from the vacation!

In addition to this massive concert review, we also have your regularly scheduled Torture Chamber!

HATE FOREST                                                      "Against All Odds"

CLAMFIGHT                                                         "Clamfight"

GRUESOME                                                          "Silent Echoes"

EMPYREAN SANCTUM                                        "Detachment From Reality"

HAEMORRHAGE                                                  "Opera Medica"

DEAD CHASM                                                      "Spectral Tyranny"

DIABOLIZER                                                         "Murderous Revelations"

A BREAK IN THE ACTION + NEW TORTURE CHAMBER!

This last weekend, the Good Doctor got his brains scrambled and his eardrums assaulted at MILWAUKEE METALFEST! Have no fear, I am doing a write-up on the event, which included sets by EXODUS, ENSLAVED, 3 INCHES OF BLOOD, DOWN and a ton more. But due to this and also some work time at the Lab, there's no interview or major feature this week. Next week will see COLONEL ANGUS' epic report on the HELL'S HEROES show so get ready for that.

I can also confirm that we will indeed be seeing yet another new initiate here at Wormwood! Get ready for the debut of MERCYFUL MIKE, who joins BOB BURNER as the new recruit. This fiend is well known in the Wisconsin area. The ranks of Wormwood are ever growing!

We did manage to get you a new Torture Chamber this week, though! Here we go...

HAREM SCAREM                                          "Chasing Euphoria"

SPIRITWORLD                                              "Helldorado"

DESERTED FEAR                                           "Veins of Fire"

PATCHWORK                                                "Scars"

TRIVAX                                                           "The Great Satan"

WARFIELD                                                     "With The Old Breed"

GAME OVER                                                  "Face The End"

GATES TO HELL                                            "Death Comes To All"

SIJJIN                                                              "Helljinn Combat"

SWEET CORN AND BLACK METAL: MEET ILLINOIS' BLOOD CULT!

We didn't have to go too far to find this week's interview subject. Just to Central Illinois and the bustling metropolis (sic) of Moweaqua, where dwells one J.R. PRESTON, the creator and leader of redneck black metal band BLOOD CULT! If that sounds strange, it is! J.R. has a lot of stories to tell about small town weirdness and the fight against prejudiced minds. His droll delivery makes this a very entertaining chat and you will also learn about the latest BLOOD CULT album "We're Gonna Take Your Soul". So get off of that combine and read all about it HERE!

Next week might see slim pickins' from Wormwood as DR. MALITY and THERON MOORE are headed to the mayhem of MILWAUKEE METALFEST. We'll try to get some Torture Chamber reviews up but any big interview or article will have to wait until the following week. We should have COLONEL ANGUS' exhaustive report on the HELL'S HEROES fest then for you!

Speaking of the Torture Chamber, we've got some big names like CANCER and ONSLAUGHT along for the ride this week!

CANCER                                                             "Inverted World"

WRATH OF LOGARIUS                                     "Crown Of Mortis"

GOATS OF DOOM                                             "INRI"

OVERDRIVERS                                                   "Glory Or Nothing"

MISFIRE                                                              "Product Of The Environment"

ONSLAUGHT                                                     "Origins Of Aggression"

IT'S THE DEBUT OF BOB'S BURN PIT!

At Wormwood Laboratories, we're always looking for fresh blood to help us cover loud music and freaky film! Well, new recruit BOB BURNER is going to help us with both, but especially the world of obscure, low-budget and psychotronic film. Hence we have the debut of BOB'S BURN PIT, where Bob puts three cult movies under his microscope. This time around, we look at 1981's oddball horror anthology "THE MONSTER CLUB" starring VINCENT PRICE, JOHN CARRADINE & DONALD PLEASANCE, 1977's urban kung fu revenge thriller "DEATH PROMISE" and 1985's heavy metal horror "BLOOD TRACKS", featuring members of EUROPE, SHOTGUN MESSIAH and more! Grab a piece of pizza and get ready to burn HERE!

Cleveland's most over the top death metal band NUNSLAUGHTER have been friends of ours for a while and I can tell you we've got another interview with the one and only DON OF THE DEAD coming up. This time, the honors are done by THERON MOORE, who tells me he asked Don some really off the wall questions this time around. That will be coming up down the road.

Now for a Torture Chamber jam-packed with top notch releases!

DOOMSDAY                                               "Never Known Peace"

BENEDICTION                                            "Ravages of Empire"

ADAMANTIS                                               "Reforged"

SAVAGE MASTER                                       "Dark & Dangerous"

FLAGG                                                         "Diabolical Bloodlust"

MEATWOUND                                            "Macho"

CLAN DOS MORTOS CICATRIZ                "Tecnicas De Morte"

LIQUIFIED DECOMPOSITION                   "Filekeeper"

BEHÖLDER                                                  "In The Temple of The Tyrant"

INTO THE FOREST WITH HAVUKRUUNU!

Finland is quite the remarkable country and well known as the most "metal" place in the world. And in Finland itself, the area known as Tavastland is especially unique. Covered in deep forests and dark marshes, the Tavastians cling to their traditions with fierce pride. From this land comes one of the best black metal bands in the world, the mighty HAVUKRUUNU. Their new album "Tavastland" is a love letter to their homeland and one of the best albums you'll hear this year. I talked to their straight-shooting frontman STEFA about "Tavastland" and how the past lives on in metal. A gruff and funny fellow! Get his insights on the band HERE!

Also coming to Wormwood will be melodic metal upstarts SEVERED ANGEL, who have surprised a lot of people with new album "When Eternity Ends". COLONEL ANGUS hooked up with skinbeater WAYNE NOON...that will be here soon. Also coming soon will be the debut of BOB's BURN PIT, a look at obscure film from our newest convert BOB BURNER!

Speaking of Bob, his review of the new SACRED STEEL kicks off this week's Torture Chamber!

SACRED STEEL                                                  "Ritual Supremacy"

BEAR MACE                                                       "Slaves Of The Wolf"

DYNAZTY                                                           "Game Of Faces"

MORBIFIC                                                          "Bloom Of The Abnormal Flesh"

ROKETS                                                              "Bad Choices"

FROGG                                                               "Eclipse"

TAKE A RIDE WITH THE FERRYMEN...PLUS SOME BIG NEWS!

Are you ready to pay the toll and meet THE FERRYMEN? COLONEL ANGUS already has met this amazing unit of melodic metal masters....specifically, he's talked to RONNIE ROMERO, who not only lends his golden tones to THE FERRYMEN, but also the likes of RAINBOW, LORDS OF BLACK, SUNSTORM, and more! Find out what this superb vocalist has to say about THE FERRYMEN and their great new album, "Iron Will" by clicking right HERE! See you on the other side!

I also want to announce a NEW member of Wormwood Laboratories! Humanoids, welcome aboard the one and only BOB BURNER! When Bob can find time between promoting Chicago metal shows and visiting every pizza parlor on Earth, he will be writing reviews of weird and quirky movies for us, as well as the occasional musical review. The first edition of "BOB'S BURN PIT" is already written and will be coming your way soon!

The Torture Chamber is even weirder, wilder and bigger than usual this time around!

MESSA                                                   "The Spin"

LIK                                                          "Necro"

SEVERED ANGEL                                  "When Eternity Ends"

PHANTOM                                            "Tyrants Of Wrath"

ABYSSAL VACUUM                              "Abyssal Vacuum"

NEPTUNIAN MAXIMALISM                 "Le Sacre du Soleil Invaincu"

BELNEJOUM                                         "Dark Tales of Zarathustra"

TÓMARÚN                                            "Beyond Obsidian Euphoria"

GALGEBERG                                         "Cerberus"

IN SEARCH OF OGOPOGO!

 It's time once more to dive into the weird world of the Wormwood Files! This time we head north to British Columbia and the murky depths of Lake Okanagan, which is said to be the home of the lake monster known as OGOPOGO! This creature inspires more sightings than even the fabled Nessie...we look at just a few of the many sightings, which go back hundreds of years to the days of the First Nations and extend to the present time. Find out why Ogopogo might just be the most likely creep from the deep right HERE!

I think we might have a new name popping up here at Wormwood Laboratories pretty soon. This miscreant is actually a well known member of the Midwestern metal scene, but we will keep his identity secret out of an abundance of caution. When the time is right, all will be revealed! Some other cool things happening behind the scenes here as well....more in the future!

Here's one of the most interesting Torture Chamber lineups in a while...

COFFIN FEEDER                                        "Big Trouble"

WHIPSTRIKER                                            "Cry of Extinction"

DON AIREY                                                "Pushed To The Edge"

PAGAN ALTAR                                           "Never Quite Dead"

CHAMBER MAGE                                      "By Light Of Emerald Gods"

GRAVE INFESTATION                               "Carnage Gathers"

NOBODY'S FASTER THAN HIRAX!

That's a fact! In the wild and woolly world of thrash metal, few bands can keep pace with the mighty HIRAX! For 40 years, they've been scorching the ears of all who've encountered them. And always at the head of the HIRAX pack is KATON W. DEPENA. One of the most recognizable faces in the scene, he's been keeping the faith for 40 years now. It was my honor to talk to this forefather of the scene, who's promoting a brand new release, "Faster Than Death". Proud and humble at the same time, Katon had a lot to tell me. Find out exactly what he said HERE!

A Mexican PHANTOM is coming soon to Wormwood! If any band can follow in the footsteps of HIRAX, it would be these young hellions from Guadalajara. Well, we've got an interview upcoming with them as well! And that ain't all! COLONEL ANGUS gets to talk to singer extraordinaire RONNIE ROMERO, who lends his talents to many bands including RAINBOW. But perhaps the most interesting of Ronnie's projects is THE FERRYMEN, with guitarist Magnus Karlsson (PRIMAL FEAR) and all-star drummer MIKE TERRANA. Something else coming down the pike from Wormwood!

Got a little something for everybody in this week's Torture Chamber!

CELESTIAL SANCTUARY                                  "Visions of Stagnant Blood"

CABALLERO                                                      "Caballero"

SPIDERS                                                             "Sharp Objects"

FELGRAVE                                                         "Otherlike Darknesses"

SON OF MAN                                                    "Gaslight"

CORPUS OFFAL                                                "Corpus Offal"

KILLER ALIENS AND GIANT LEECHES ATTACK!

Time again for us to venture into the world of cult film! This time our interstellar investigator DARK STARR looks at two great examples of low-budget 1950's sci-fi mixed with horror. First, he looks at the cheap and nasty yet extremely forward-thinking "NIGHT OF THE BLOOD BEAST", where an astronaut not only returns from space, but also comes back from the dead! What connection does he have to the alien monster that likes to decapitate people? Then we head to a steamy swamp down south to encounter "ATTACK OF THE GIANT LEECHES"! The title is everything you need to know about this infamous sleazy monster flick! Find out more about these classicks and their new combined release on Blu-Ray HERE!

Should have COLONEL ANGUS' epic report on the HELL'S HEROES' fest in Houston pretty soon. I'm also working on interview with two thrash metal bands, one very well known and the other brand new! Keep watching the skies, humanoids!

Now for an extra big edition of the Torture Chamber, complete with reviews of new DESTRUCTION and WARBRINGER!

DESTRUCTION                                                "The Birth Of Malice"

DECREPISY                                                       "Deific Mourning"

THE LORD WEIRD SLOUGH FEG                   "Traveler Supplement 1: The Ephemeral Glades"

WARBRINGER                                                  "Wrath And Ruin"

NECRONOMICON (Germany)                        "The Final Chapter"

RAGING SPEEDHORN                                     "Night Wolf"

PUTRID OFFAL                                                  "Obliterated Life"

RUINOUS POWER                                            "EXTREME DANGER: Prototype Weaponry"

SIN OF GOD                                                      "Blood Bound"

THIS TERRIFIER AIN'T NO CLOWN!

Canada strikes again! The Canadian thrash metal scene is hotter than spit on a griddle and no band from the Great White North is thrashier than TERRIFIER! THERON MOORE knows the score because he got to talk to head screamer CHASE THIBODEAU! Follow the path of TERRIFIER from humble beginnings to their current status poised on the threshold of greatness. Get yet neck brace and find out more HERE!

And you better keep that brace around, because it looks like we will have a couple more fast and furious bands coming up soon. I'll let you know more once the interviews are in the bag. I can confirm, however, that I will be diving into a new PHILM PHREAKS article looking at the crazy low budget film career of Texas' favorite son LARRY BUCHANAN, director of "Mars Needs Women", "Zontar: The Thing From Venus" and "Goodbye, Norma Jean"! 

This week's Torture Chamber brings forth classic metalcore, the return of a muscle-bound metalhead, Gothic horror and some of the sickest death metal ever unleashed! And that's not all...

LADY BEAST                                             "The Inner Alchemist"

BLEEDING THROUGH                             "Nine"

DEATHLESS LEGACY                               "Damnatio Aeterna"

SCARE                                                       "In The End, Was It Worth It?"

THOR                                                        "Ride Of The Iron Horse"

MEPHITIC CORPSE                                 "Sickness Attracts Sickness"

CORPSING                                              "Viewing The Invisible" EP

RIDE INTO BATTLE WITH THE CIMMERIAN!

Somewhere north of the civilized kingdoms of man, near the forbidding mass of Crom's holy mountain, dwells a band of metal warriors known collectively as THE CIMMERIAN! They have lain down their sword to pick up guitars, but they still kill! Join DR. MALITY as he travels into "An Age Undreamed Of" to speak to NICK ROCHA of THE CIMMERIAN, who wields the bass and greets the crowds with howls of lust and fury! Learn the lore of this mighty band and their rugged mix of doom and thrash and hear tales of the warriors who have inspired them HERE! If you don't, then to hell with you!

You know the drill with the Torture Chamber, so crash right into this mass of musical mayhem!

LO-PAN                                                   "Get Well Soon"

CHEMICIDE                                             "Violence Prevails"

NEGATIVE 13                                          "Recover What You Can"

MONTE PENUMBRA                              "Austere Dawning"

AIRFORCE                                                "Acts of Madness"

BLOOD CULT                                         "We're Gonna Take Your Soul"

HELL COMES TO HOUSTON...WITH KERRY KING!

Is it hotter in Hell...or Houston? That depends on where KERRY KING and his buddies are! Recently, the ex-SLAYER guitarist was in Oiltown and so was our boy COLONEL ANGUS! Angus gives us the full rundown on KERRY's gig, which also featured MUNICIPAL WASTE and ALIEN WEAPONRY! This bunch turned the House of Blues into the House of MAYHEM! Lots of great pics can also be found in the in-depth report HERE!

Speaking of live reviews, it won't be long before Angus also covers the awesome HELL'S HEROES gig with SAXON, ABBATH and a boatload more. And not long after that, the Good Doctor will be up in Wisconsin for the 2025 edition of MILWAUKEE METALFEST, with DOWN, ARCH ENEMY, EXODUS and more bands than there are nits on my sister's hair! Plus we should have some more news for you soon!

This week's Torture Chamber features edgy approaches to several metallic genres!

MISANTHROPY                                                  "The Ever Crushing Weight of Stagnance"

MINDWARS                                                        "V"

SCALPTURE                                                        "Landkrieg"

KARLA KVLT                                                        "Thunderhunter"

DISTRICT 97                                                        "Live For the Ending"

THE 7TH GUILD                                                 "Triumviro"

STEP INTO TOMORROW WITH IAN BLURTON'S FUTURE NOW!

We've always had time for great Canadian bands here at Wormwood Laboratories and this week is no different, despite the provocations of the current Asshole In Chief. The latest bunch of northern hellraisers to get the WC treatment is IAN BLURTON'S FUTURE NOW! THERON MOORE talks to Mr Blurton himself, a Canadian music producer of no little renown who has a taste of crunchy 70's hard rock in classic fashion. Find out the roots of this retro-futuristic band HERE!

For the first time in a while, we've got an extra sized Torture Chamber, chock full of metallic goodness!

SANHEDRIN                                             "Heat Lightning"

SCOUR                                                      "Gold"

PAYSAGE D'HIVER                                   "Die Berge"

TYRAN                                                       "Tyran's Oath"

CAUSTIC PHLEGM                                   "Purulent Apocalypse"

SABER                                                       "Lost In Flames"

ACT OF IMPALEMENT                             "Profane Altar"

VULTURE'S VENGEANCE                        "Dust Age"

ONSLAUGHT KOMMAND                      "Malignancy"

GET SLAUGHTERED AT THE BÜTCHER SHOP!

Get ready for plenty of splatter and gore because we're about to enter the realm of BÜTCHER! These old school speed metal maniacs hail from Belgium and have been wrecking necks and praising Satan with a vengeance the last few years. Their latest adventure in aural butchery is "On Fowl Of Tyrant Wing" and here to tell you all about it is guitarist K.K. RIPPER! Mr. Ripper spills the beans on his gradual conversion to the ways of evil thrash and the band's many classic influences! This one is a lot of fun, so strap in and get those splatter-proof face shields ready when you find out more HERE!

We got another wild interview with a controversial dude coming up, but this one is a lot closer to home. I talk to J.R. PRESTON from Illinois' own "redneck black metal" band BLOOD CULT! Wow! This guy loves to throw some grenades, let's put it that way! I should also have news soon on some new Philm Phreak reviews!

This week's Torture Chamber features twisted Goth rock, brutal death metal, expansive prog metal and just plain METAL!

BRAINSTORM                                                         "Plague of Rats"

PHRENELITH                                                           "Ashen Womb"

NEW SKELETAL FACES                                           "Until The Night"

LUNAR                                                                     "Tempora Mutantur"

MEAN MISTREATER                                                "Do Or Die"

LOANSHARK                                                            "No Sins To Confess"

WORMWOOD'S BEST OF 2024 LISTS ARE IN!

OK, humanoids, it's that time of year again! The Worm-Crew reveal their picks for the 10 best music releases of 2024! We've been doing this for a long time and it's always a lot of fun seeing the wildly different choices. I think those differences make us one of the most unique webzines out there!

As always, I will give you a teaser here and present the #1 picks of each writer. For the entire listins, click HERE! But here are the #1's...

DARK STARR                                     THE LAST DINNER PARTY               "Prelude to Ecstasy"

COLONEL ANGUS                            EVERGREY                                          "Theories of Emptiness"

DR. ABNER MALITY                          CRYPT SERMON                               "The Stygian Rose"

THERON MOORE                             MC5                                                     "Heavy Lifting"

IRON SHEIK                                       ACCEPT                                              "Humanoid"

THOR                                                 ABORTED                                           "Vault of Horrors"

LORD RANDALL                               NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS       "Wild God"

OCTOPI MILLS                                 MY DYING BRIDE                             "A Mortal Binding"

Also got a couple of newsworthy tidbits for you. Look out for COLONEL ANGUS' live report on a recent Houston show featuring KERRY KING, MUNICIPAL WASTE & ALIEN WEAPONRY! With tons of great pics! And as far as the next Wormwood Files goes, it looks like I will be writing about the legendary Canadian lake monster OGOPOGO!

In addition to the Top 10 lists, you also get the Wormwood Torture Chamber to gnaw on!

THE FERRYMEN                                                    "Iron Will"

HAVAKRUUNU                                                      "Tavastland"

CHRISTIAN MISTRESS                                          "Children of the Earth"

BIND TORTURE KILL                                            "Sauvagarie"

FORNDOM                                                            "MoPir"

NITE                                                                       "Cult of the Serpent Sun"             

ENTER THE FANTASTIC REALM OF MAD PARISH!

The esteemed COLONEL ANGUS recently trekked into the snowy Quebec woods to speak with one of Canada's most notable progressive metal bands, MAD PARISH, and their guitarist BOB EAGLESHAM! Much of the chat centered around MAD PARISH's ambitious new concept album "The Dust of Forever" and its inspiration, along with the band's many and diverse influences. Get an insight into the world of these power-hungry minstrels of metal HERE!

Next week should see our annual "Top 10" lists looking at each Worm-scribe's favorite albums of the previous year. And as for the subject of the next Wormwood Files, it looks like it will be devoted to another Canadian institution...the infamous lake monster OGOPOGO!

The new Tolrture Chamber features both JETHRO TULL and MUTAGENIC HOST...a strange pairing you'll only see at Wormwood!

SACRIFICE                                                   "Volume Six"

JETHRO TULL                                              "Curious Ruminant"

MUTAGENIC HOST                                    "The Diseased Machine"

HAZZERD                                                    "The 3rd Dimension"

CMPT                                                           "Na Utrini"

NECKBREAKKER                                        "Within The Viscera"

A MUSICAL JOURNEY WITH THE LACONIC

Something a little bit different and a bit more laid back than the usual Wormwood mayhem this week, as our Wizard of Prog, DARK STARR, interviews multi-talented music maven MARC PELATH in connection with his experimental project THE LACONIC. THE LACONIC has a sound that is very hard to pin down, with influences from progressive rock, ambient, jazz fusion, metal and straight up rock n roll. Marc himself tries to explain what he's doing and the reasoning behind it, as well as the latest LACONIC album "Ascension". Take the trip HERE...

We've been getting a ton of good interviews recently and it shows no signs of letting up. The new album from Finnish epic black metallers HAVUKRUUNU made such an impression on me that I had to talk to them. And so I did, connecting with band mastermind STEFA! Look for both review and interview soon. I was also hoping to have the subject of my latest Wormwood Files for you, but I am putting it up to a vote on the Wormwood Facebook Page. Stop by there and cast your vote!

Got an extra large Torture Chamber for you musical masochists, featuring MARILYN MANSON, HIRAX, SCUMRIPPER and many more!

MARILYN MANSON                                        "One Assassination Under God, Chapter 1"

HIRAX                                                               "Faster Than Death"

AVATARIUM                                                     "Between You, God, The Devil and The Dead"

AEON GODS                                                    "King Of Gods"

TIGGUO COBAUC                                           "Fountains Of Anguish"

URFEIND                                                          "Dauþalaikaz"

DERISION CULT                                               "Mercernary Notes, Pt. 2"

SCUMRIPPER                                                   "For A Few Fixes More"

WEED DEMON                                                "The Doom Scroll"

GET READY FOR A BRUTAL MASSACRE!

BEWARE THE GRIP OF THE HAUNTED STRANGLER!

BORIS KARLOFF is often called "The King of Horror" and with good reason! This week, we take a look at one of Boris' more obscure roles and find a hidden gem, with the venerable actor delivering a knockout performance as a character both tragic and fiendish. The movie is 1957's '"THE HAUNTED STRANGLER", where Boris investigates the mysteries behind a 20 year old series of brutal murders...and finds himself thrust into a total nightmare! See what DR. MALITY has to say about this forgotten classic of horror cinema HERE!

Things are really starting to cook here at Wormwood! I've snagged an interview with European metal fiends BUTCHER, who are taking the thrash and black metal scenes by storm with their raging blast of molten witchery! Also coming soon will be THERON MOORE's interview wtih 70's inspired hard rockers FUTURE NOW and their mainman IAN BLURTON! We should have even more news for you Worm-fiends shortly!

Here's a Torture Chamber that focuses on rising new talent!

BONFIRE                                                    "Higher Ground"

THE CIMMERIAN                                       "An Age Undreamed Of"

RUIN DWELLER                                         "Apocalyptic Ruin"

THE SLIME                                                 "Crabwalk to Oblivion"

THE RAGING PROJECT                             "Future Days"

DISTORTA                                                  "Dead Man" EP

SHATTERFACE                                           "Deviate" EP

WE KICK OFF 2025 WITH AN INTERVIEW TWOFER!

Another trip around the sun gets started here at Wormwood Laboratories and we ain't wasting any time! We kick it off with TWO interview from Mr. THERON MOORE. First, he speaks to the feisty MINA WALKURE, frontwoman for European power metallers BRONZE! Mina is one hard-driving lady, as you will find out HERE! Then we turn to the States and new classic metal band KINGDOM OF TYRANTS, who boast members from STEEL ASSASSIN and MELIAH RAGE in their ranks. For this one, Theron talks to veterans KEVIN CURRAN and MIKE MOONEY about the genesis of K.O.T. and what they've got planned. Read all about it HERE!

On the horizon, you can look for future interview with the new barbarian metal band THE CIMMERIAN, who come down from Crom's mountain to talk with DR. MALITY. Also get ready for another Theron Moore special, as he talks to Canada's maniacal thrashers TERRIFIER. And of course we will also have the infamous Wormwood "Top 10 Lists", this time focused on the best of 2024!

Here's the first Torture Chamber of 2025, stuffed with musical mayhem of all types!

OPETH                                                        "The Last Will And Testament"

ELECTRIC WIZARD                                    "Black Magic Rituals and Perversions, Vol. 1"

GUTLESS                                                    "High Impact Violence"

STORACE                                                    "Crossfire"

CRUCIFICTION                                           "Will To Power"

THE LACONIC                                            "Ascension"

PUTRED                                                      "Megalit al Putrefactiei"

JARNBORD                                                 "Filmer for Blinda"

HORSE BUTCHER                                      "Horse Butcher" EP

WE END 2024 WITH A MIGHTY BLAST FROM ENFORCED!

Another year gets flushed down the great cosmic toilet. Here at Wormwood we close things out with a hellacious racket, as DR. MALITY interviews Virginia's unstoppable thrash warriors ENFORCED. Specifically, he talks to vocalist KNOX COLBY about the incredible RIchmond VA metal scene, the band's latest EP "A Leap Into the Dark" and a scary "Spinal Tap" moment where Knox almost wound up almost incarcerated in a forgotten room. Grab on to this hair-raising chat HERE!

The last Torture Chamber of 2024 is suitably wild, featuring grave diggers, naked whippers and shrieking demons...and that's just a start!

GRAVE DIGGER                                               "Bone Collector"

NAKED WHIPPER                                           "Chapel Defilement"

IMPELLITTERI                                                  "War Machine"

SHRIEKING DEMONS                                     "The Festering Dwellers"

ORNATORPET                                                 "Fordomdags"

IGNITOR                                                          "Horns and Hammers"

SPEND CHRISTMAS WITH THE WATCHER!

At this festive time of the year, there's nothing better than a dose of. doom-laden heavy metal to lift your spirits. That brings us to Boston-based band THE WATCHER and COLONEL ANGUS' interview with them. He speaks with bassist MAX FURST, who is quite the well-spoken chap. Max tells us how THE WATCHER nails down the sound of early heavy metal, the influence of obscure NWOBHM bands, and what lies ahead. You can hear what he had to say HERE!

Just want to take a moment away from my usual transplant experiments to wish all of you a Happy Holiday season no matter what holiday you enjoy. 2024 was a pretty good year for Wormwood and we plan on making 2025 equally rewarding, if not more so.

And now for a cheerful dose of the Torture Chamber, overflowing with sonic goodies...

MORK GRYNING                                           "Fasornas Tid"

BEDSORE                                                       "Dreaming the Strife For Love"