Nicholas Franco, Author at Cryptic Rock

Aborym – Hostile (Album Review)

Nicholas FrancoNicholas FrancoFebruary 10, 2021

There was a time when the name Aborym was synonymous with the finest in Industrial Black Metal. Hailing from Italy, the band arose in the late ’90s with a sound that was rather unique to the labyrinthine world of extreme music. Created by Malfeitor Fabban ... Read More

Tribulation – Where the Gloom Becomes Sound (Album Review)

Nicholas FrancoNicholas FrancoJanuary 28, 2021

Hailing from the icy realm of Sweden, Tribulation has built a solid following over four albums and across sixteen years of relentless touring. Beginning life as a Death Metal band, the nuances of their songwriting and their penchant for horror always promised that there would ... Read More

Asphyx – Necroceros (Album Review)

Nicholas FrancoNicholas FrancoJanuary 18, 2021

During the glorious 1980s, Heavy Metal music branched into several different theaters of extremity. One of those styles, Death Metal, entrenched itself in the underground and became its own monster. Though scenes and bands sprung up all over the world, one of the pillars of ... Read More

Adrian Smith – Monsters of River and Rock: My Life as Iron Maiden’s Compulsive Angler (Book Review)

Nicholas FrancoNicholas FrancoDecember 8, 2020

When it comes to books by musicians in famous bands, we usually get the stories of famous singers, the frontmen or women about whom most of the attention revolves. This time, with Monsters of River and Rock: My Life as Iron Maiden’s Compulsive Angler, out on ... Read More

Sodom – Genesis XIX (Album Review)

Nicholas FrancoNicholas FrancoNovember 23, 2020

It is safe to say that modern-day Extreme Metal, particularly thrash, would not be what it is today without the likes of Sodom. After bursting onto the nascent metal scene back in 1982, the oft-maligned group rose up and began to demand the utmost respect from ... Read More

My Dying Bride – Macabre Cabaret (EP Review)

Nicholas FrancoNicholas FrancoNovember 19, 2020

When it comes to the purity of a sub-genre of Heavy Metal music, there are few bands as dedicated as West Yorkshire veterans My Dying Bride. Coming from the old guard of doom, their expansive sound has remained steadfast. On Friday, November 20, 2020, they ... Read More

Nicholas Franco

Aborym – Hostile (Album Review)

Tribulation – Where the Gloom Becomes Sound (Album Review)

Asphyx – Necroceros (Album Review)

Adrian Smith – Monsters of River and Rock: My Life as Iron Maiden’s Compulsive Angler (Book Review)

Sodom – Genesis XIX (Album Review)

My Dying Bride – Macabre Cabaret (EP Review)

Aborym – Hostile (Album Review)

Tribulation – Where the Gloom Becomes Sound (Album Review)

Asphyx – Necroceros (Album Review)

Adrian Smith – Monsters of River and Rock: My Life as Iron Maiden’s Compulsive Angler (Book Review)

Sodom – Genesis XIX (Album Review)

My Dying Bride – Macabre Cabaret (EP Review)

This Week In Horror Movie History – The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999)

This Week In Horror Movie History – Sphere (1998)

This Week in Horror Movie History – Hannibal (2001)

Developing Artist Showcase – Noah Parker

Developing Artist Showcase – Jesse Jo Stark

Developing Artist Showcase – Alice Merton

Interview – Johnnie Dee of Honeymoon Suite

Interview – Dean Roland of Collective Soul

Interview – André Gower Talks The Monster Squad + More

Victory – Circle of Life (Album Review)

Elevation (Movie Review)

Paul Kelly – Fever Longing Still (Album Review)