Thecodontion: "Thecodontia"

Deadly bass-driven chaos

Who would've ever thought that taxonomy and paleontology would father a metal band? However unlikely it may seem, Thecodontion channel the highly destructive forces of pre-history into a dense state of chaos on their debut demo, Thecodontia.

Silent Carrion: "Suprematism EP I: Iupiter"

The project strays from its path but makes a slight return

Silent Carrion has always been progressive and boundary pushing. It's the bread and butter, the heart and soul of the project. An amalgam of trip hop, electronica, dark ambient, prog and trace amounts of a myriad of other components. Established upon the first release, Ruins, in 2010 in Northern Italy, 2013 welcomed the beginning of an EP-based trilogy starting with IUPITER, the first Suprematism EP to carry the project further.

Sguaguarahchristis: "Der Nacht"

High class black metal

One can hardly blame a band with a name like Italian black metalheads Sguaguarahchristis for coming up with a shorter abbreviation for convenience - So SG666 it is. Der Nacht forms the second act of their dark, anti human performance, with a few smaller offerings closing the gap between the 2012 debut and their 2014 sophomore album.

Sathanas Urine: "Everything You Need to Know About Witchcraft"

An exercise in the worst music has to offer

Some would argue that the purpose of metal in many aspects is the ever-ongoing chase for counter-culture, extremity and a level of aggression that most - even as rock music likewise has followed suit into heavier territory - would find offensive or even unlistenable. True to the blasphemic roots that drove early black metal, Sathanas Urine - from the Veneto region in northeastern Italy - search for the vilest and most far-away corners of music. 

Aurora Purpurea: "I"

Musical poem, the brilliance of which lies in contrasts

Introducing a band about which there exists little to no information is a hard thing to do, at least from a factual stand point. Aurora Purpurea hail from Italy, and in 2008 they released their sole album, titled simply I. That is all. So let us instead let the music of Aurora Purpurea speak for itself.

Agamotto: "Agamotto"

Unfriendly music for dark thoughts and contemplation

Though perhaps lacking a bit of the first mover credibility of entities such as Brian Eno, Steve Reich, Lustmord or Throbbing Gristle, Agamotto borrows heavily from all those. Mixing industrial and ambient fluctuations in a current of deviating intensity and feel, the Italian being rests surely on groundwork lain by great predecessors.

Darkend: "Grand Guignol: Book I"

Symphonic black metal done right

When you mention symphonic black metal, most people will instantly think of Dimmu Borgir. The funny thing is that a band like Italy's Darkend in much greater capacity encompass the essence of the genre in many aspects. Though their lyrics aren't overtly satanic - as is usual custom, their riffs aren't thin tremolo-fests, their vocals aren't solely the throaty rasping usually combined with the style, and the drumming is much more varied than the conventional blast beats, at heart they are much more a black metal band than Dimmu Borgir (they were, after all, featured on a split with power metal bands Avantasia and Sonata Arctica in 2014) - or similarly prominent bands in the scene - currently are.

Silent Carrion: "Andras"

Droning trips through industrial-religious rituals

The sunny slopes of Italy is what Scaia, the sole member of Silent Carrion, calls home. However, the feeling of a baking afternoon sun, the view over olive groves and terracotta rooftops and the scent of dry grass and red wine is far from what Silent Carrion invokes or calls upon for inspiration.

Cosmo Cocktail: "Cosmotronic Racing"

Oversaturated neon-nostalgia

Cosmo Cocktail's album comes courtesy of 30th Floor Records, a label dedicated to the synthwave genre. Though not a veteran per se, they were definitely one of the early movers within the scene to organize and release synthwave albums from independent artists. Cosmo Cocktail, based in Italy, prides himself on his use of hardware synths, sequencers and drum machines, and with good reason. With a morass of new artists emerging from the scene every day there's more than a few who rely solely on standardized VSTs and digital sequencer software, often resulting in an amateurish feel to otherwise groovy synths in a rude and entitled celebration of the fact that nowadays "anyone can make music".