Taiwan’s Beyond Cure serve up a deathcore beat-down on their debut E.P., Chronically Fester.  No strangers to breakdowns, the occasional bout of melody, and the odd unabashed pig squeal, this E.P. is a diverse effort with heavy doses of  the two main influences on the band, hardcore and death metal, though nods to acts like As Blood Runs Black, Whitechapel, and The Black Dahlia Murder are readily apparent. Many listeners will probably see the parallels between the tongue-in-cheek humor o f TBDM and Beyond Cure as well.  But make no mistake, as any humor that is thrown in, mostly via the pig squeals, does nothing to detract from the overall heaviness of the music.

Vision of Disorder is the long-awaited full-length debut from Taiwan’s masters of melodic thrash, Infernal Chaos, known locally simply as I.C. Their debut E.P. sold out in Taiwan, and inspired a loyal legion of fans who memorized every lyric, particularly those to the new-school thrash anthem “We Stand Alone.” As such, big things were expected from the band for this release.

Though some may know the band as a side project of guitarist Jesse Liu, also known as Jesse, the Infernal when he pulls six-string duty in Taiwan’s best-known metal outfit, Chthonic, this is not a side project, and this is no mere side project offering. From the opening riff on the album’s first song “Wasted Time,” Infernal Chaos make it clear that they are here to deliver catchy arrangements, shout-along choruses, and heavy, but memorable songs with an emphasis on timeless songwriting and carefully-measured balance.

Korea’s Audio Blossom play a mix of classic metal and rock that harkens back to the late 70s and early 80s. It’s got a little bit of that Thin Lizzy groove and some definite glam scene influence from the likes of W.A.S.P., especially on the gritty vocals. In fact, until some online fact checking was done, upon listening to the first few tracks on 1st Faust, this reviewer was convinced that vocalist Hye Jon Son was a man. However, the fact that the English name given for the singer is Lydia, and that it explicitly states “female” beside that name on the band’s Myspace page, would suggest otherwise.

Singapore's Bhelliom are back with their second album, the first with new vocalist Vivek who took over the screaming duties from bass player Joe. Having been around since 2000 and touring around Asia, many in the Asian metal scene are familiar with Bhelliom's take on the melodic death Gothenburg sound. It's a little In Flames, some Arch Enemy, a bit of Hypocrisy with a touch of Soilwork thrown in. The result is an accessible yet punishing sound. Harmonized Euro leads are played over chugging, simplistic yet catchy rhythm guitar lines and the type of low end bass and drum work that, while not overly showy, gives the music a rock-solid foundation and heaviness one can't help but feel.

Evocation were founded in 2004, and presumably spent the last four years crafting their epic debut album, Take Your Soul. It was well worth the four-year wait. They are Hong Kong's own Dissection, producing an utterly impressive brand of progressive black metal, with six of the disc's nine tracks clocking in at over six minutes. The vocals have a slightly necro tinge, somewhat akin to Ihshan's sound on the early Emperor recordings, but vocalist Tomy also throws in some lower tones and the sound is  less muddled. The music itself is a mixture of melodic Swedish death and Norwegian black metal. In other words, Black metal riffs are reinvented with a Swedish twist. It's very disarming at times, as is the case with the clean neo-classical guitar interlude on “Final Division,” but the lull is quickly broken by brutal shrieking and blast beat fury.

Put this disc in and let the beautifully-played flamenco-infused intro, “The Beginning,” wash over you. Then, you may want to consider getting all the valuables out of the room, because by the time this CD stops spinning your room could very well be completely thrashed. In the pummeling intro of the CD’s title track, the triggered bass drum sounds of drummer Yazu, who is an absolute rock throughout this CD, rattle the skull while the eardrums are simultaneously pierced by the strong, punishing vocals of screamer Inamoto, who is equal parts Randy Blythe and Phil Anselmo.

Infernal Coldness is a darker offering from Thailand's Rancorous than their 2005 album, In the Circle of Throne. The slight layer of cheese from that album has been scraped off this time around, though a little has been left behind. The galloping power metal delivery is still present at times, but the riffs played over top seem darker than the uplifting riffs on their previous album—a shift away from the band's power metal influences towards the darker side of their record collection, where mainstream black metal discs by bands such as Dimmu Borgir are kept.

Rancorous, from Thailand, are the  musical bastard sons of Witchery, Dragonforce, and Helloween. On In the Circle of  Throne, Maiden-esque dual leads and galloping rhythms stand alongside touches of thrash, power metal, and even blast beats from time to time. The vocals call to mind black metal fare, but the influence of power metal comes through on tracks such as “Born in the Abyss” in higher pitched screams that seem to be an extreme metal version of the clean falsetto screams of Rob Halford. Uplifting, soaring solos and power metal song arrangements paint pictures of epic battles on tracks such as “Blades Thirst for You (sic) Blood.” Most of the songs have that familiar   European power-metal buildup, where the chords played grow progressively higher to an audience-moving crescendo, which some listeners may find slightly cheesy, but there is no faulting the musicianship on In the Circle of the Throne. Rancorous' virtuosity reminds of the playing of Children of Bodom's Alexi Laiho, Dragonforce's Herman Li, and even Yngwie Malmsteen.