When I think about Miami, the first things that come to mind are excellent empanadas, terrible traffic, and Cynic. What doesn’t come to mind is thrash, although I’ve learned that the Magic City has some history in this regard (Solstice). Thrash quintet Acidosis currently resides in Los Angeles, but their own history dates back to a Miami high school in the mid-to-late 2000s, where frontperson Ben Katzman and guitarist Diego Edsel first formed the band. Arrival, Acidosis’s long-gestating debut album, re-records and reimagines songs Katzman, Edsel, and crew first concocted when they were teenagers. Acidosis may lie their heads in La La Land, but the flamingo-pink background and seafoam-green eyelid tentacles adorning that cover clearly aim to put Miami on the thrash map.1

Arrival is a survivor story, in more ways than one. After dissolving Acidosis, Katzman served stints in several other acts and even competed in season 46 of Survivor.2 In reforming the band, Katzman and Edsel enlist the talents of Harry Schwarz (drums), Jonathan Rusten (rhythm guitars), and Deo Budnevich (lead guitars) to create Arrival, a 9-song, 26-minute thrash incursion.3 Acidosis channels Municipal Waste in wasting no time with long songs, favoring crossovery bangers filled with riffs more rambunctious than a pitbull. “Arrival” opens things up with a sly devil, “They Live!” keeps the party going with punk energy, and “Hostile Negotiations” caps nifty pull-offs and speedy power chords with a delicious tag. Later on, Acidosis conjure the classics, with riffing reminiscent of the chromaticism of Megadeth (“Mankind”) and the stomp-age of Anthrax (“Deadly Fits”). I have no idea how much/little these songs have changed since Katzman and crew were in high school, but Arrival’s riffs have survived the test of time.

Arrival by Acidosis

Ben Katzman ultimately supplies the fuel that powers this Miami Thrash Machine. As a vocalist, he sounds like a less shouty, more tuneful Tony Foresta (Municipal Waste). Katzman knows how to implant a titular line in the listener’s head (“Hostile Negotiations,” “Mankind”) and when to throw some anthemic ‘whoas’ into the mix (“They Live!”). As a bassist, he is equally integral to imbuing Acidosis with its unique charm. Whether (re)charing songs with a bass break (“They Live!,” “Where I Stand”) or shredding a low-end solo (“Hostile Negotiations”), Katzman kills it on the four strings, with a tone that is just the right amount of distorted and clangy. Arrival is clearly Katzman’s passion project, and his passion shines throughout.

Alas, no album with roots in Vice City was going to pass without sin. While I appreciate the spirit of succinct songwriting here, some tracks are definitely in need of more flesh. “Hostile Negotiations” is a banger that would benefit from bridge development, and album-closer “Where I Stand” opens with a country western lick that implies scope that isn’t realized. Switching from slothful songwriting to gluttonous album-craft: the interludes are completely unnecessary. Arrival isn’t even ten minutes old before “Interlude” breaks up the thrash action, and “Interlude 2” intervenes after only two more tracks that total less than nine minutes. These interludes, though short, disrupt the energetic pace, lengthening an album that’s chief virtue is its brevity. Arrival also suffers from inconsistent soloing. Edsel and Budnevich trade off on many of these tracks, revealing that one of these shredders is stronger than the other. Unfortunately, there are several moments where uncontrolled guitar wrath rears its ugly head, with solos sounding like they’re struggling (“Mankind,” “Deadly Fits”).

Having hypocritically cast my critical stones, I will say that none of these sins are deadly. The long-awaited Arrival of Acidosis is a fun time, certainly worth a 26-minute investment from thrashers and metalheads more broadly. Acidosis play a familiar style with no real innovation, but they stamp it with their own personality, much of which stems from Katzman’s presence as a frontman and essential bassist. Add Acidosis to the list of things I positively associate with Miami—I’ll scope out the line if and when they serve up their next platter of thrash turnovers.

Rating: 3.0/5.04
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Self-Released
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: March 27th, 2026

Becoming a fully-fledged metalhead is when you stop associating German metal with Rammstein and start with Teutonic thrash.1 There’s something about Germany that just makes thrash metal meaner, dirtier, and nastier than anywhere else, and without Teutonic thrash, extreme metal would likely look very different from where it is today. Knowing and loving this heritage, Germany’s own Teutonic Slaughter throws their feather-capped hat into the ring with their third album, Cheap Food, brandishing both a ridiculous album cover and a conviction to maintain the glory of old school Teutonic thrash metal. But it can be a challenge staying firmly rooted in the past while sounding vital in the present. Can Teutonic Slaughter make the cut with Cheap Food, or will this record go down hard like dry currywurst?

A lot of bands aren’t good judges of their own sound, but Teutonic Slaughter deliver what’s on the tin with Cheap Food: no-nonsense German thrash built to bash your bratwurst in forthwith. Teutonic Slaughter riffs without restraint or mercy, drawing from the melodic but near-death metal aggressiveness of Kreator (“Redistribution,” “Hostage”) as vocalist Phillip Krisch rasps and growls with the volatility of Sodom’s Angelripper and the band tears through tracks in reckless, Tankardesque good-times-lovin’ fashion (“Witches Rock ‘n’ Roll,” “Give em Hell”). Krisch and Jan Heinen’s guitars are hefty and lacerated on Cheap Food, bolstered by drummer Christian Vollmer’s thunderous kicks and an even heftier bass presence from Fabian Kellermann. The power chord rules on Cheap Food, but Teutonic Slaughter mix it up whenever necessary, like on the twisty leads of “Cheap Food,” the arpeggios kicking off “Redistribution” or the harmonics-laden chorus of “Witches Rock ‘n’ Roll.” Teutonic Slaughter promised nothing but good, archetypal German thrash and Cheap Food has that in spades.

But more impressively, Cheap Food also delivers in hashing out good thrash to the masses by means of lean songwriting, blistering energy and vicious vocals. Though songs frequent the thrash iffy-zone of five-plus-minutes, Teutonic Slaughter serve riffs and ideas economically, letting nothing wear out and keeping energy squarely at eleven. Besides the back end of “Eviscerating Surgery” and the dead minute-and-a-half of “Intro,”2 Cheap Food is spry at 36 minutes and flies by in a head-banging haze. Teutonic Slaughter sound one volt from exploding on Cheap Food, baring teeth on “Redistribution” and “Fight the Reaper” with crossover levels of hardcore intensity reminiscent of Municipal Waste.3 Personally, I think it’s Krisch’s animal-like mic job that gives Cheap Food its meanest bite, lathering songs with deathly howls (“Eviscerating Surgery”), blackened roars (“Witches Rock ‘n’ Roll”), hardcore gang shouts (“Hostage”), and just some of the gnarliest barks and shouts this side of Sodom. Gnarly vocals on top of fatless, relentlessly aggressive songs is foam crowning Cheap Food’s beer stein, and brother, it’s flowing over.

Teutonic Slaughter made a simply fun album. You’re not getting any radical surprises out of Cheap Food, and that’s by design. Instead, Teutonic Slaughter delight through expert performances of well-trodden thrash staples. Heinen provides the dive-happy, shredful soloing you expect and demand from the genre, leaving everything he has on closer “Give ’em Hell” in a no-holds-bar display of guitar belligerence. Thematically, when not dealing in societal or political issues (“Cheap Food,” “Redistribution”), Teutonic Slaughter revel in the schlocky macabre (“Witches Rock ‘n’ Roll,” “Eviscerating Surgery”) and fist-pumping motivation (“Fight the Reaper,” “Give em Hell”). It’s not meant to be complicated. Teutonic Slaughter aimed to pound your brain to spätzle with Cheap Food, and if you give it a spin, they’ll have succeeded handily.

Worthy of their countrymates’ thrash legacies, Teutonic Slaughter produced an incredibly enjoyable album in Cheap Food. Riffing heavy, fast, and without stop, it’s a record that’s here for good times and for making good times. Perhaps it gets a bit played out by the end, repeating a short list of moves for half-an-hour, but Cheap Food proved to be a surprisingly compelling listen that only further endeared itself to me with every listen. Obviously, if you like thrash, I’m going to recommend you give Cheap Food a spin. If not, don’t let the door hit your lederhosen on the way out. Mahlzeit!



Rating: Very Good
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps MP3
Label: Iron Shield Records
Websites: facebook.com/teutonicslaughter | teutonicslaughter.bigcartel.com
Available Worldwide: January 30th, 2026

Power Trip and Municipal Waste to Headline 2026 Decibel Magazine Metal & Beer Fest: Philly:

#DecibelMagazineMetalBeerFest #Philly #PowerTrip #MunicipalWaste

Link: https://metalinsider.net/festivals/power-trip-and-municipal-waste-to-headline-2026-decibel-magazine-metal-beer-fest-philly

#TheMetalDogArticleList
#MetalSucks
Power Trip and Municipal Waste to Headline Decibel’s Metal & Beer Fest Philly 2026, Liver Damage Pending

https://www.metalsucks.net/2025/12/16/power-trip-and-municipal-waste-to-headline-decibels-metal-beer-fest-philly-2026-liver-damage-pending/

#PowerTrip #MunicipalWaste #lineup #MetalSucks #metal #music

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#MetalInjection
POWER TRIP & MUNICIPAL WASTE To Headline Decibel Magazine Metal & Beer Fest: Philly 2026

https://627e81c5fee2d202a5df846c.paas-p.smehost.net/tour-dates/power-trip-municipal-waste-to-headline-decibel-magazine-metal-beer-fest-philly-2026

#POWERTRIP #MUNICIPALWASTE #ToHeadlineDecibelMagazineMetal #BeerFest #MetalInjection #metal #music

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#Blabbermouth
POWER TRIP And MUNICIPAL WASTE To Headline 2026 Edition Of 'Decibel Magazine Metal & Beer Fest: Philly'

https://blabbermouth.net/news/power-trip-and-municipal-waste-to-headline-2026-edition-of-decibel-magazine-metal-beer-fest-philly

#POWERTRIP #MUNICIPALWASTE #ToHeadline #festival #Blabbermouth #metal #music

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#MetalInjection
POWER TRIP & MUNICIPAL WASTE To Headline Decibel Magazine Metal & Beer Fest: Philly 2026

https://metalinjection.net/tour-dates/power-trip-municipal-waste-to-headline-decibel-magazine-metal-beer-fest-philly-2026

#POWERTRIP #MUNICIPALWASTE #ToHeadlineDecibelMagazineMetal #BeerFest #MetalInjection #metal #music

Concert Calendar (12/11-12/14) The Penultimate Hurrahs: Municipal Waste, Imperial Triumphant, & more:

#ConcertCalendar #MunicipalWaste #ImperialTriumphant #UpcomingShows

Link: https://metalinsider.net/touring/concert-calendar-12-11-12-14-the-penultimate-hurrahs-municipal-waste-imperial-triumphant-more

Morbikon – Lost Within the Astral Crypts

By Owlswald

When he’s not dealing in the Slime and Punishment of Municipal Waste or pissing off the neighbors with Iron Reagan, axe-wielder Phil “Landphil” Hall channels his focus into Morbikon. Formed in 2020, Hall’s black metal side-project earned recognition from AMG Industries when Ferox highlighted the supergroup’s debut, Ov Mournful Twilight, as his surprise record of 2022. Rooted in all things kvlt and trve, the album’s second wave frostbitten anthems plunged into the remnants of burned churches and stale corpse paint, resulting in “eight meloblack rippers calibrated to bring winter to your soul and whiplash to your neck.” Now, Morbikon’s sophomore LP finds Hall honing his homage to the black arts, promising to descend his creation into a deeper, more sepulchral state. Ignite your torch and prepare the Necronomicon—it’s time to get Lost Within the Astral Crypts.

Lost Within the Astral Crypts forges the scorched spirit of Ov Mournful Twilight into a leaner, more technical and overwhelmingly black entity. Drawing on the lineup’s pedigree, Morbikon’s collective talent coalesces into an authoritative, and at times downright impressive, synthesis of 90s-influenced blackened thrash. Vocalist Mathias “Vreth” Lillmåns (Finntroll, …And Oceans) returns with his characteristic throat-ripping vocals, as furious down-picked riffs and swarming, lightning-quick tremolodic scales consistently anchor the material firmly in the black. Complementing Hall’s stylish fretwork, drummer Pierce Williams (Ænigmatum, ex-Skeletal Remains)—who replaces Dave Witte—adds raw, destructive rhythms with tight rolls and syncopations that are both refreshing and sophisticated. Tracks like “Unending Legions of Baal,” “Masters of Eternal Night” and “Flames that Bind and Shadows Cast” evoke a full-on black metal assault reminiscent of Satyricon or Emperor, complete with pounding double bass and subtle synths, while “Ghoul Infested Mausoleum” and “Heavens that Burn and Eons Divided” push the envelope with airy Wintersun melodicism peppered with thrash savagery.

The necrotic might of Lost Within the Astral Crypts rests in Morbikon’s technical excellence, elevating the album’s eight tracks beyond the seminal Scandinavian sound. Worshipping at the altar of the almighty riff, Hall and company immediately demonstrate their capabilities on “Heavens that Burn and Eons Divided”—an energetic, fun and melodic banger driven by a potent layered tremolo attack, fantasy-toned leads and Williams’ tomb-raiding blasts that promptly underscore Morbikon’s technical ambition. “Ghoul Infested Mausoleum” features the record’s best tremolo riff: a spectral high/low scale progression imbued with nocturnal gravity, bolstered by Williams’ accented beats and Lillmåns’ gnarly shrieks. Shreddy, virtuosic solos on the title track, “Flames that Bind and Shadows Cast” and “Numeric Portal Ascendency” push Lost Within the Astral Crypts past the point of a stereotypical tremolo-fest, while strategic thrash and death explorations (such as the opening passage of “Flames that Bind and Shadows Cast”) help maintain listener interest before regrounding the album’s dark, aggressive roots.

Given Morbikon’s stellar execution and the album’s efficient 43-minute runtime—with little bloat to be found—any criticism must instead focus on Lost Within the Astral Crypts’ songwriting. “Masters of Eternal Night” is a serviceable track, but often clings too tightly to classic Scandinavian conventions (even adopting a familiar Mayhem-like conclusion), rendering it less engaging than the album’s superior cuts. “Sworn to the Beheaded King” briefly adopts a more aggressive, in-your-face death metal spirit at its midpoint, including a tasteful guitar solo. Yet, these highlights can’t mask the track’s conventionality as it quickly retreats to familiar black metal terrain. Although the monolithic presence of Lost Within the Astral Crypts occasionally falters in favor of genre conventions, stagnant sections (“Ghoul Infested Mausoleum,” “Flames that Bind and Shadows Cast”) and even some superfluous wankery (“Lost Within the Astral Crypts”), the underlying songwriting remains solid, with engaging riffs and hooks that are strong enough to largely sustain the album’s momentum.

Lost Within the Astral Crypts is a worthy reinvention of a well-trodden sound. While the album is certainly not groundbreaking—nor is it trying to be—it demonstrates top-notch musical dexterity and delivers exceptionally well-executed material that is aggressive, dark and steeped in 90s nostalgia. At its weakest, Lost Within the Astral Crypts serves as a grim invitation to exhume those second-wave classics from your collection; at its strongest, it stands as a fun, rock-solid blackened thrash record that advances and validates Hall’s creative vision, confirming Morbikon’s vast potential.

Rating: Good
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Tankcrimes
Websites: instagram.com/morbikon | facebook.com/morbikon
Releases Worldwide: November 21st, 2025

#andOceans #2025 #30 #aenigmatum #americanMetal #blackMetal #emperor #finntroll #ironReagan #lostWithinTheAstralCrypts #mayhem #morbikon #municipalWaste #nov25 #review #reviews #satyricon #skeletalRemains #tankcrimes #wintersun