Pop/Metal Mashups Vol.15- Back to Black

Title: Pop/Metal Mashups Vol.15- Back to Black
Size: 89mb
Description: New Western Pop Metal Renditions from Youtube.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?l9d5ss03twcbra7

What's this?
After a bunch of experiments with Jpop, anime tunes, and internet memes, we're back to Western pop mashups. And yes, I took another week and some odd days off again from posting. I don't have all that much left aside from one Classical Metal album and 2 more mashup compilations. Maybe I'll do some scouting later today for some more new stuff.

Review
Well, turns out I'm still sick of this shit. It's got some good renditions, as usual, but it's not nearly as funny or interesting as it once was. However, there are some new additions here that weren't on previous collections, like Beyonce, Sugababe, Salt-N-Pepa, Miley Cyrus (wut), Nicki Manaj (ew), and Celine Dion (huh). There are some other ones too.

The metallers are quite capable in most of these, and if you liked earlier collections, this will fit in pretty well with them. Final message: Jessica Jung > Beyonce Knowles. By a lot :)

GREY SKIES FALLEN - Two Way Mirror

Title: GREY SKIES FALLEN - Two Way Mirror
Size: 55mb
Description: Third release by this Progressive/Death Metal Band

Download:
http://www.greyskiesfallen.com/

Third one.
Took the last couple days off to compile some more. Not sure if I'm happy with what I have atm, gotta re-listen to it all and make sure it's up to par. Anyways, here's another GSF album in the meantime.

Review
I find this one to be the most progressive of the three I've posted. If there's one thing this band has dedicated itself to, it's staying fresh and changing it up every now and again. It's varied and diverse. I like that they blend the sort of Grungy nineties sound with death metal stylings too. Anyways, I recommend it.

Classical Metal Vol.11

Title: Classical Metal Vol.11
Size: 114mb
Description: More Classical Music with Metal Instrumentals

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?w2ddpn1z5t0mcmc

Grab it while it's still there.
The site I found these links from went down, apparently, so who knows how long this will stick around. You'd better grab it while ya can. I found more links on 4shared, but I'm not sure if they work and I don't really trust that provider to begin with.

Review
Exact same story as the previous volume. I can't even add anything else about it. A few good ones scattered about, the rest we've heard dozens of times and there are some that aren't even metal to begin with.

INNERSIGHT - The Euphoric Solitude

Title: INNERSIGHT - The Euphoric Solitude
Size: 50mb
Description: Fifth album by this incredible moniker

Download:
http://innersight.hu

Yes, I skipped posting their fourth album.
The reason being that it isn't even remotely a Metal album. Not even a guitar to be heard. It's good for what it is though, so you can still pick it up at the same location if you like. It's called "Movement", and it mostly seems like movie music, sorta ambient and stuff. Anyway, here's the fifth one.

Review
This is seemingly the first real follow-up to the first album. It's very reminiscent of it, in my opinion, but it has the added female vocals overtop for a decent change.

The verdict? Splendid. An amazing trip through and through, and it has to be heard to be believed. This could be a great starting point for anyone who's looking to get into this band. It's technical, beautiful, and yet highly accessible.

Pop/Metal Mashups Vol. 14- Clap Your Sistar in the Chocolate Love

Title: Pop/Metal Mashups Vol. 14- Clap Your Sistar in the Chocolate Love
Size: 106mb
Description: Another Kpop Metal renditions cd from youtube.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?546roptpybc3ucp

Overdue.
I've had this one ready to upload for quite a while now, but as previously stated, I've been majorly slacking this week with this blog. I'm trying to remedy this right now as I'm listening to the next INNERSIGHT album, which is awesome so far. Anyway, this is the second last complete pop/metal mashups volume I have at the moment, although I'm in the midst of compiling two more.

Review
While not quite as great as the previous kpop one, this definitely has some gems in it. Most are done by JTLeung. If you liked the other kpop metal renditions, you need to pick this up no questions as well.

That's really all that can be said. For those who need more kpop stuff, I'll have something different in store for you a little later.

VALKYRIA - Epica

Title: VALKYRIA - Epica
Size: 99mb
Description: First official album LP from Valkyria.

Download:
http://www.valkiria.it/mp3.htm

Been a while...
Yep, I've been slacking. It seems that the free metal albums site has changed this past week, so hopefully the past links to there are still working alright. Anyways, here's the first LP by Valkyria.

Review
I can't say that the production quality is much (or even any better) than their previous demo release. In fact, this feels more like a second full release.

Despite the rather low quality of the sound, it's still pretty good. Very progressive, very melodic, very diverse, and sometimes very beautiful.

What's interesting here is that they've re-recorded some tracks from it and released them as the "new version", so that's available there too. I didn't check it out, even though it's probably better, I somehow prefer original versions.

GREY SKIES FALLEN- Tomorrow's In Doubt

Title: GREY SKIES FALLEN- Tomorrow's In Doubt
Size: 77mb
Description: Second release from this great Progressive band.

Download:
http://www.greyskiesfallen.com/

And another one tonight.
I've been a little busy compiling a couple new things, so expect those soon. Things are bound to slow down quite a bit in the near future, as I'm starting to run out of compilations. The next step is advertising the blog to various sites.

Review
Another pretty good release here. I actually liked it better than their first album. The songs are longer this time (8tracks), so expect a lot more of those progressive elements throughout. The material is quite varied too. I'm interested to see how the newer stuff holds up in comparison, as the two newest only have 4 and 3 tracks respectively (EPs? or perhaps just exceedingly long).

Classical Metal Vol.10

Title: Classical Metal Vol.10
Size: 128mb
Description: Barely any metal, but here's the 10th installment.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?obk2hlm71lye4bg

Been a couple of days...
I've been a little lazy, but here we go.

Review
There's not so much metal on this one as a whole. There are a whole bunch of tracks by a group called Vadrum, and there are no guitars or anything in them, so it's pretty much just straight up Classical. That doesn't make it a horrible album or anything, but if you're only here for Metal then you're not gonna like this one as much.

There are some pretty good Metal ones sprinkled throughout though, so maybe just avoid the Vadrum ones?

INNERSIGHT- Meandering

Title: INNERSIGHT- Meandering
Size: 30.5mb
Description: Third effort by an awesome, and very diverse band.

Download:
http://innersight.hu/
(Third from bottom, listed as Blue Shadow, but it is Meandering. See above for cover)

2 songs. One is loooooong.
This may seem like an Ep, but the first track is almost half an hour in length itself, and the other one is around 6 mins or so. In any case, this is the group's third complete release.

Review:
Another excellent release! This is another melodeath album with progressive movements intertwined. The first track has 8 parts to it, all pretty easily decipherable, and all awesome.

You'd think they'd slow it down for the final track, but they really don't. In some ways, the epilogue is better than the rest of the album. Then again, in some ways not... Anyways, get this whether you liked their previous ones or not.

IN ELEMENT- Synthesis

Title: IN ELEMENT- Synthesis
Size: 51mb
Description: This is either a long EP or a short LP. Maybe both.

Download:
http://freemetalalbums.wordpress.com/2009/06/06/in-element-synthesis-oscillating-through-waves-of-symmetry/

Wait... I've heard this before!
This is the second release from this awesome group. I was mistaken with their last effort, I hadn't actually downloaded their previous album before and not listened to it. It was this one. And I HAVE heard it before. It's really good, and I'm astonished that I don't have it in any of my old folders... maybe on an older computer.

Review
This one is even better than their debut, if a little bit short. It definitely shows progression, and each track is pretty standout in its own way. I especially like the third track, I think I put it on one of my car mixes some time ago too.

I will not be posting their newest album on here, as I believe it is a commercial effort under a major label. Or minor label. Some sorta label that sells stuff. They do have a free live album if you wanna pick that up from the site above.

That's all I have to say right now, get this.

Pop/Metal Mashups Vol.13- MEMEtal

Title: Pop/Metal Mashups Vol.13- MEMEtal
Size: 72mb
Description: Memes Metalified on youtube.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?qtg9x2owbkqyze6

WTF is right!
It was time for something really different again. If you're up to par on your youtube memes, you should find this stuff hilarious. If not... well you don't really matter then, do you? It should go without saying we probably won't be seeing another one of these in the future either, as I found these were the best ones available and there's no room for a continuation.

Review
Most of these are pretty funny. I added a couple extras in for kicks, Spice Girls, Shania Twain, another track by LukHash (go to his site and get his albums, they're pretty cool). Anyways, I think this covers all the best memes out there: Nyan Nyan Cat, Chocolate Rain, Tunak Tunak Tun, All Your Base, Amazing Horse, Charlie the Unicorn, the list goes on. There's even a Rick Roll one, haha!

This isn't something you'll wanna chill and listen to more than once or twice, but it's good for a laugh. The Amazing Horse cover by ReinXeed is extremely excellent though, check them out.

Classical Metal Vol.9

Title: Classical Metal Vol.9
Size: 114mb
Description: Some metal... but mostly violins.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?7dh5cmsbpsv7n7p

Read the description.
Seriously. I love me some violins though, so I wasn't bothered by this. It's definitely a step in a different direction, and it made this volume feel more comprehensive as a whole. Not sure what's up with the cover, btw.

Review:
This compilation is more or less just okay. There are quite a few tracks that seem to be by one guy, rather than a band, and sometimes it shows. It's not to say these tracks are bad, but they're definitely less grand and not quite as exciting as we've heard with past collections.

Worry not, none of these players are as bad as any of the players in KISS. That cover is just amusingly misleading.

Taking the day off uploading and posting.

Spent most the morning working in the garage, and the rest of the afternoon finding new tracks for future compilations. Will post new stuff tomorrow.

Pop/Metal Mashups Vol.12- S.N.S.D. (Still Not Sicka Dis)

Title: Pop/Metal Mashups Vol.12- S.N.S.D. (Still Not Sicka Dis)
Size: 74mb
Description: Even more Kpop Metal renditions from Youtube.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?rypuufn0ex5wdrm

And even more Jessica Jung.
We're over the Japanese pop crap, anime or regular. However, I couldn't help but push forward and compile some more Kpop. There are just too many good ones out there to pass up (hurray for Youtube users with a buttload of time on their hands!).

Review
At only 15 tracks long this time, this is still probably the best of the Kpop Metal rendition volumes. The recordings are pretty clear, there are some wicked solos throughout, the songs are decently heavy, and you've got a bunch more awesome SNSD throughout.

BoysGenerationJKT's newest cover is here as well (Time Machine), which is as awesome as ever. There's another one from KmetalPT as well, and it sounds like their recordings are getting clearer and louder. A user by the name of Loobie has made a couple amazing ones here too.

I have to admit, only about 2 or 3 tracks in this collection AREN'T highlights. So if you liked the previous Kpop ones, or have yet to try them, you should get this.

VALKIRIA- Thur Kuarankharn Sthorn

Title: VALKIRIA- Thur Kuarankharn Sthorn
Size: 42.5mb
Description: First release, a demo, but also a very full album in itself.

Download:
http://freemetalalbums.wordpress.com/2007/11/14/valkiria-thur-kuarankharn-sthorn/

A decent release.
While the sound quality isn't the best you'll find on this site, this release was full enough and interesting enough that I had to include it. At least, I consider it to be their first full release, as they have an even older, shorter, crappier demo that exists.

Review
I liked it. It isn't extarordinary like other albums I got from the site above, but it was definitely a worthy experience. There are a couple instrumental tracks in there that really help push the progressive atmosphere, and they have sort of a doomy feel to them, if you're into that.

I would recommend it if you're okay with lower production quality. If that's a pet peeve of yours, skip it and move on to the next. There's something very natural and fitting to me with harsh production sounds, so I tend to be pretty forgiving when it comes to that (old Suidakra albums for the win!).

Classical Metal Vol.8

Title: Classical Metal Vol.8
Size: 91.5mb
Description: More Classical music done by Metal bands.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?00jq7ocbfvvwqje

2/3 of the way through!
I've listened to at least one of these every day so far, and it's been a pretty good start to each day. Kind of relaxing, actually. Each volume can be a lot to take in though, so I don't really recommend hearing them all in a row. Just take each one in individually until you're sick of it. Then, and only then, should you move on to the next.

Review
I don't know any of these bands, aside from Rhapsody, who we've heard before in previous volumes. Actually, the Rhapsody one here sounds really familiar, and it quite awesome. This volume has a few good tracks along the way, but it's probably my least favorite thus far. In fact, a bunch of the tracks aren't even metal, some some are without guitars, or are completely acoustic.

I don't recommend starting with this one by any means.

Pop/Metal Mashups Vol.11- ANIMEtal

Title: Pop/Metal Mashups Vol.11- ANIMEtal
Size: 61mb
Description: Anime metal mashups from Youtube.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?7jt0y2fzcyoyhdq

Something else again.
After the failure that was the Jpop/Metal compilation, I decided to try out anime metal mashups instead. Still Japanese, but a little more catchy and competent. The results are a little better, but still not my cup of tea.

Review
Most of these are done by Coverguy88, a pretty good player overall. I have my reservations about some of the tracks he decided to cover though, as they're kinda boring to begin with. On the other hand, he does what he can to be as diverse as possible. The few he didn't do are a mixed bag, and one is extremely weird (I think it was a meme, but I'm not sure).

Some of these are really short too, like 1 and a half minutes long, so it's a shorter collection. I think it gets the job done, and I won't be repeating this with a followup anytime soon (probably ever). If you liked the Jpop compilation, you'll like this one too. If not, well, give it a shot anway. There's more Kpop coming up next :)

Classical Metal Vol.7

Title: Classical Metal Vol.7
Size: 142mb
Description: seventh volume in the series of metal covers of classical music.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?9v6r5m7o0aa1ju8

There goes my morning.
Is it me, or are these just getting bigger and longer all the time? It certainly seems like it! Anyways, here's the seventh volume in this 12-part epic series. The 3 bonus tracks at the end are lower quality than the others, but they're pretty badass anyway.

Review
This one opens with a really awesome track, which is followed by a rather boring one. As usual, as the album progresses, it's kind of a mixed bag. There were a lot of repeats on this one again, but I was surprised about halfway through at some of the different stuff.

Haggard has always really interested me, and their two tracks on here are quite possibly the best in the volume. Trans-Siberian Orchestra makes another appearance with 2 songs, again with varying results (they like the most popular ones, it seems). The volume starts much weaker than it finishes, so give it a chance.

TORTURE DIVISION- Evighetens Darar

Title:
Size: 52mb
Description: 2nd compilation of TORTURE DIVISION EPs.

Download:
http://www.mediafire.com/?d90cymsm524hdvy

Can't wait for new Project Hate!
I finally got around to listening to this one the other day. It consists of  EPs, all labeled Evighetens Darar (parts 1-3), so it isn't like they're really meant to be split up anyway. I also included one song they did for a different compilation at the time of these recordings.

Review
I liked this one a bit better than the first compilation. The hooks are much better this time around, and the experience feels much more cohesive. Again, I'm no fan of traditional death metal, so I'm not the best judge for this kind of material. I didn't dislike it though, and these guys truly are the masters of brutality (J's vocals are so devastatingly gut wrenching, it's inhuman!). Once again, the awesome Dan Swano handled mixing.

If you're a fan of traditional death metal, or you like the Project Hate (make that LOVE, because there can be no less when it comes to TPH), you'll probably wanna give this a try.

GREY SKIES FALLEN- Fate of Angels

Title: GREY SKIES FALLEN- Fate of Angels
Size: 78.5mb
Description: Another great free melodeath album.

Download:
http://www.greyskiesfallen.com/

I keep getting lucky.
It's crazy, the first 3 albums I find through freemetalmusic are all spectacular! While this one isn't quite as diverse and either INNERSIGHT or IN ELEMENT, it's still a real treat for melodeath fans.

Review
I can't really compare this album to anything specific, so I won't even try. It's a fun listen, through and through, and that's pretty much all I can say about it. It felt as though it got better as it wore on too, so stick with it.