Music Reviews

It had been eight long years since Violent Magic Orchestra’s last album, 2016’s Catastrophic Anonymous, so their latest long player, the intriguingly-titled DEATH RAVE (released in 2024), came with a...

PUNK RECORDS is SpecialThanks’s 5th full-length album, released on 23rd October 2024. Being active since 2005, the band's current line-up is made up of Misaki Anita (on vocals and guitar)...

Fans of raunchy, raucous rock n’ roll are in for a treat because the debut EP of GNU MAD RUSSELL$ received a global release via those groovy guys at German...

In case you keep an eye on the weekly music video roundup, the name La bit Pluie is probably no stranger to you. La bit Pluie's music can be described...

Tokyo-based band Cilvie were formed at the height of the global pandemic and that whole experience forced the band to find new, more inventive, ways of recording. However, most importantly...

Although Japan has a long history of producing top-quality metal acts (think Loudness and E.Z.O.), the last decade has seen an explosion of groups which have placed that country at...

Formed in Hakodate, Hokkaido in 2010, andO2’s relative isolation from Japan’s cultural centre of Tokyo has helped them shape a unique sound all their very own. Incorporating elements of emo,...

Formed in the midst of the global pandemic, it is perhaps no surprise that Minato’s BLOOD PICK ME opted for a distinctly shoegaze/alternative sound. Despite drawing influence from ‘90s icons...

Formed on the bustling streets of Tokyo, Satsuriku Robot have come a long way since their inception in 2020. After releasing their first EP First Contact, the following year, the...

This year they are celebrating their 15th anniversary as an idol group: Momoiro Clover Z, commonly abbreviated as MCZ or Momoclo. That this fact will be celebrated in a big...

Once the preserve of misanthropic and narcissistic Norwegians, black metal has since evolved to become a global phenomenon. It’s a strange anomaly that some of the genre's best music is...

I was raised and weaned on bands such as Dark Funeral and Napalm Death, so I’m no stranger to sonic extremes. However, the new album by harsh-noise artist Kurumi Kadoya...

We here at AVO Magazine are always happy when BRIDEAR release a new album, but their latest offering has got us excited beyond belief. Recorded during last year’s European jaunt,...

Drawing influence and inspiration from such metal greats as Yngwie Malmsteen, Marty Friedman and Stratovarius, MAJUSTICE are a Japanese/multinational band who are putting the ‘power’ into ‘power metal’. A septet...

Comprised of 5 members, 4 vocalists (Kiria, Mizuki, Ayathimu & Alice) and DJ Goichi, the group was formed in 2014 under the name ‘principal!’ and became cana÷biss in 2017 after...

Broken By The Scream (also known as BBTS) are an alternative Idol group formed in 2016, the current line-up consists of ​​Io Nodukidaira (野月平イオ), Tsubaki Nanaougi (七々扇ツバキ), Ayame Yabusame (流鏑馬アヤメ)...

Hailing from Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, Survive have been terrorising listeners for almost 25 years with their full-on thrash assault. Since forming in 1998 they’ve left a tantalising trail of 7...

To say Esprit D’Air’s sophomore album had a difficult birth would be something of an understatement. Originally beginning life in 2018 Oceans was abruptly halted when singer Kai had his...

Formed in Tokyo in 2013 Heterogeneous Andead lost little time in releasing an EP (2015’s Undead) which was soon followed by 2017’s critically acclaimed album Deus Ex Machina. After some...

Originally released digitally as a two-track single Scarlet Holliday was MONO’s Christmas gift to the world in the midst of a global pandemic. Now expanded with an extra song Scarlet...

Singer, author and poet Ekotumi has not been idle in the past year. She continued to make new music, kept in touch with her fans by sharing special performances, but...

Japan is perhaps not your first thought when contemplating black metal, but DEATHROLL have arrived to challenge any preconceived ideas. Formed in 2011 and hailing from the Fukushima Prefecture DEATHROLL...