Weekend Breakdown: Dark Serpent and Entrench

Freakin' energetic as all get out, Israel's thrash attackers DARK SERPENT assemble songs full of fantastic hooky riffage and satisfying dynamics.

These guys have had time to hone their craft since Dark Serpent began way back in 1997. They recorded an EP in 2000 and after their attempt at recording a full length album in 2006 fell through, they finally hit the studio in 2010 to put together their debut album titled M.K.C. (Mass Killing Convention) for a 2011 release date.

So 12 years to get out a debut? That's one long road, but in the end it paid off. The songs I've heard off M.K.C. made me sit here on my computer and spew all kinds of thrash fanboy yammering about just how kick-ass Dark Serpent happens to be.

In addition to all the thrash insanity that Dark Serpent expertly churns out, these guys add some healthy weight to their songs via impressive musical prowess. Lead guitarist Giardello Caravagio's solos are well-crafted and the music-only sections in songs such as Siatha De’shmaya are fun as hell to experience.

So check out the tunes below and thrash out! If you like it, you can purchase M.K.C. here and then keep up with Dark Serpent here.







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Sweden's ENTRENCH offers up some hard-hitting thrash with melodic twists and a freakin' cornucopia of slamming riffs to cause serious neck PAIN.

Guitarist/vocalist Fredrik Pellbrink can hammer out catchy hooks and rhythms, filling each Entrench song with savage doses bad-assery. Off their Inevitable Decay album, songs such as Portrait of a Phobia highlight the array of riffage that Entrench can successfully weave into a song, bringing to mind Schuldiner-style DEATH as well as hints of Obituary-style stomp.

Other songs such as Into Oblivion and Blind Illusion use headbanging dynamics to the fullest extent as the lads keep the speedy and half-time rhythms tight and furious.

As I listened to the full Inevitable Decay album, I couldn't keep count of how many times I kept saying, "Killer!" or "Bad-ass!" or "ERMAHGERD" or…well, you get the point.

Check out the tunes below and then hit them up here.