New Metal Review - "Exile" by Black Sites

Album Name - Exile
Band Name - Black Sites
Genre - Heavy/Progressive Metal
Label - Hoove Child Records
Release Date - April 19, 2019 
Line Up -
  Mark Sugar - Vocals, Guitars, Lyrics
  Ryan Bruchert - Guitars
  Jose Salazar - Bass 
  Garry Naples - Drums

When a debut album released by a new band blows me away, I become very skeptical about their next release, as often times they disappoint me with their next outing. But 'Black Sites' seems made from a different element altogether, as their new release seems to be just as strong as their first one, with blazing heavy metal at its core and once again mixing influences from various other rock and metal genres into their music.

New Metal Review - "In Monochrome" by Black Sites

Album Name - In Monochrome
Band Name - Black Sites
Genre - Heavy/Progressive Metal
Label - Mascot Records
Release Date - February 17th, 2017 
Line Up -
  Mark Sugar - Vocals, Guitars
  Ryan Bruchert - Guitars
  John Picillo - Bass 
  Chris Avgerin - Drums

Trying to put the label of a specific genre on a band can be quite hard at times. 'Black Sites' is such a band, which incorporates various influences in their music, creating a mixture of many genres in their sound. But at the end of the day, music is all about enjoyment. And this band has a cast of skillful musicians producing a unique metal experience that is bound to make you head-bang like a maniac and hit the repeat button as soon as the album ends.

New Metal Review - "In The Passing Light of Day" by Pain of Salvation

Album Name - In The Passing Light of Day
Band Name - Pain of Salvation
Genre - Progressive Metal
Label - InsideOut Music
Release Date - January 13th, 2017
Line Up -
  Daniel Gildenlöw - Vocals (lead), Guitars, Lute, Bass (additional), Keyboards (additional), Drums (additional), Percussion (additional), Accordion (additional), Zither
  Léo Margarit - Drums, Percussion, Vocals (backing)
  Daniel "D2" Karlsson - Keyboards, Grand Piano, Vocals (backing)
  Gustaf Hielm - Bass, Vocals (backing) 
  Ragnar Zolberg - Guitars, Vocals, Keyboards (additional), Accordion, Zither

Near death experience has always been a great catalyst for the creation of great music. And the latest by 'Pain of Salvation' is another example of this fact. 'Daniel Gildenlöw' wrote beautiful lyrics depicting grief and sadness regarding the closeness of death among other such concepts. The progressive aspect of the band's instrumentation augmented by the exquisite transition between aggressive heaviness and emotional slower bits complement the lyrics making the whole experience rather poetic.