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Weekly rundown January 20 – 2023
A hard-hitting week that leans heavily into the gothic and gloomy. But it’s not all sullen darkness, as a few splashes of striking color and groove make up the perfect counterbalance.
Atrocity – Okkult III
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5We start the week with some rusty-toned death metal from Germany. If you like the idea of a modernized, death-ified version of the classic Kreator sound, then you’re onto the right track here. This is half-serious devil worshipping, mildly groove infused stuff. It’s on the stale side, not going anywhere in particular, and lack the really standout riffs that might have compensated for it, but it feels solid and dependable.
Big City – Sunwind Sails
Genre: Hard rock/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Big and vibrant hard rock with a larger-than-life, classic metal approach to instrumentality. It feels colorful and uplifting, but very much like something straight out of a recipe book with very few alterations.
Celestial Scourge – Dimensions Unfurled
Genre: Technical death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A no-nonsense, utterly relentless gale of brutal death metal hurtling at your face like a meticulously concerted hailstorm of metal shrapnel. The technicality is absolute king, and there is little room for groove or melody. If you’re fine with a staccato pummeling, then good on you, if not, then this might feel a little soulless.
Dark Princess – Phoenix
Genre: Gothic/symphonic metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Depending on your point of view and taste, you might find this comforting in its embrace of uncomplicated melodies, solid production and rich vocal performance. Or you might find it bland and forgettable. There is nothing abrasive about this one, save for a few instances of harsh vocals, just a slightly melancholic and solemn approach to an expansive, soaring tone.
Deiquisitor – Apotheosis
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A wave of muddled and hostile death metal that feels drawn in both a blackened and industrial direction. There is no letup here, no room for light or melodic sensibilities. At the same time, it’s not overly chaotic, and the evil tone sucks you into a dark state of mind that’ll have you shunning all that’s soft and colorful.
Dryad – The Abyssal Plain
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5How about an oily, oozing concoction of frosty black misery, gothic symphony, soul-crushing death metal and a bit of grimy sludge? It’s a lot more enjoyable than you might think. You get an overload of haunted castle atmosphere from some effective synth- and piano work, and the rest of the instruments are like flashing blades in the night. It feels a bit alien and clammy at times, but they tie it all together with some excellent rhythm work, that brings on both a black n’ roll groove and moments of ritualistic fervor.
Highlights: “Black Smoke” and “Loki’s Castle”.
Dying Light – Shallow Grave
Genre: Alternative/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 2/5
Objective rating: 2/5A hard rock-y downer-toned piece of melo-groovy heavy metal. Lyric- and instrumental wise it’s got a ways to go before it could be considered up to snuff, but the concept isn’t necessarily a bad idea.
Gypsy Chief Goliath/End Of Age – Turned To Stone Chapter 7 (Split)
Genre: Heavy/stoner metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A stoner-groovy split with the first half leaning into doom and the other a rowdy sleaze-rock. While not utterly remarkable, it’s a good time with two bands that easily stand on their own.
Half Life – Like A Jungle
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5A rather clumsily-rhythmed classic metal record with 80s style and strong AC/DC vibes from the lyrical style. It feels a bit stuck in place, although it has moments of enjoyable old-school adventure-lust.
Imperium Dekadenz – Into Sorrow Evermore
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5With an album title like “Into Sorrow Evermore”, you should have a pretty good idea of the tonal territory you’re headed for. While the vocal style is of the snarly variety and you get your customary black metal serving of crispy riffing and blast beats, this never feels hostile. Like death itself, it’s rather indifferent to tragedies and triumphs alike, and while you get a sense of the natural world taking its coarse in both grand and mundane fashion, there is no drama, no haste or bold reactions, just a cold reminder of what was and could have been. A stylistically rock solid release.
Highlights: “Forests in Gale” and “November Monument”.
Katatonia – Sky Void Of Stars
Genre: Progressive/gothic metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5Welcome to a slow tour across a vast tapestry of a million shades of comforting doom and gloom. Katatonia’s newest is a masterfully mixed deep dive into confident rhythmic play, gothic melody and a variety of highs and lows flavored with solemn grandeur, thundering heaviness, dreamy contemplation and tender caresses. While bursting at the seams with atmosphere, the production allows for well defined instrumental performances, which are allowed to drive the progression. If you fall in love with the heaviness early on you might find your interest waning a bit in the more melody focused middle part, but it picks back up. A mighty demonstration of the band’s capabilities in more than just a few respects.
Highlights: “Austerity” and “Author”.
Natt – Natt
Genre: Doom/progressive metal/rock
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5This is one of those records that just lives its own life. What you get is three songs with a combined runtime of almost 45 minutes, one of which being largely ambient and all of them instrumental. Still interested? The immersion on here is fantastic – even though there is a fair amount of droning repetition, this has a comforting, hypnotic quality. And even as the tone fluctuates organically between different moods that are both dark and light in nature, the instrumentation takes on a curious, exploring quality that pulls you along, preventing you from getting lost in a directionless mire. Apply some patience, and you shall be rewarded.
Highlight: “Appell”.
Re-Buried – Repulsive Nature
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Now for some of that sandpaper-grade death metal that sounds like it’s trailing death and damnation like a cloud of dust. It’s ominous, medium aggressive, with a fine-tuned tone. There aren’t too many standout moments, but if it scratches that particular itch for you then you’ll probably be wanting more at the end. There’s not exactly a shortage of this kind of crypt-morbid death metal these days, although these guys haven’t gone overboard with the low-fi, instead opting for a meaty, full sound that still has plenty of crispy edge to it.
Slegest – Avstand
Genre: Black/doom metal/hard rock
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5What happens when you take some Vreid-style black metal and set full sail for the sea of old school hard rock? Yep, you get something like this. This has some of that Kvelertak spunk, without going all the way rowdy. It’s plenty groovy and engaging, though it doesn’t fully knock my socks off. A little content to stay with the main riffs perhaps, but I see this being plenty energetic live.
Tidal Wave – The Lord Knows
Genre: Stoner/psychedelic rock/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5A hard hitting stoner record with some classic metal leanings and a bit of chill psychedelic flavor. The progression might feel a bit syrupy at times, but the groove is just right, and the half-desert-rock-half-doomy vocal style is a nice touch. There is a decent amount of tempo variation, even within individual songs, and with a restless drum approach contrasting the subtle cool of the guitars, the music feels like it’s constantly tugging at its genre restraints.
Highlights: “End of the Line” and “By Order of the King”.
Tribunal – The Weight Of Remembrance
Genre: Doom/gothic metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Here we have some melodic doom enveloped in the sullen, lowered-gaze veil of blackened gothic. There’s a heavy atmosphere pooling around the cold, mournful instrumental work, like an inky mist. The vocals alternate between solemn clean and vehement harsh, each taking the tone in a slightly different direction. The gothic elements are toned down, only occasionally taking a turn for the grand, providing some standout moments among otherwise fairly subdued proceedings. The perfect album if you feel like getting lost in the dark for a bit.
Turbid North – The Decline
Genre: Sludge/doom/death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5An album that feels like it’s alternating between commanding winds sweeping over barren hills, and trying to violently dismantle a stone monument with a demon-possessed sledgehammer. This is sludgy death doom where the atmosphere and aggression doesn’t try to coexist the whole time, instead giving each other space to realize their full potential. The result is a kind of two-sided experience with a strong feeling of experimentation, but with a joining tone that quells any feeling of randomness. It’s dark and really heavy, with the substance to get your mind working and the groove to get you to ball your fists.
Highlights: “Slaves” and “The Road”.
Twilight Force – At The Heart Of Wintervale
Genre: Power metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5Full-on adventure metal that’s leaving a trail of discharged crystals and spent potions in its wake. Vibrant, extremely tight, and at times endearingly weird, this reaches all the way to the core of that playful spark of childish imagination that’s the very basis of the fantasy genre, maybe even storytelling itself. This could easily just have been another cheesy, self-indulgent artificial-sounding shred fest, but every ounce of this seems carefully selected and tailored for the purpose of epic-tale-immersion, and added that all-important glint-in-the-eye that tells you not to take it too seriously.
Highlights: “At the Heart of Wintervale” and “Sunlight Knight”.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
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Weekly rundown January 13 – 2023
As the metal engine coughs into life after its eggnog-induced slumber, all sorts of weird and wonderful things tumble out of its delivery system.
Ahab – The Coral Tombs
Genre: Doom/death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5On this you’re in for some progressive slow doom with elements of death metal. It feels heavy and purposeful, like it wants to tell you a tale of the ages. Especially the melodies sell a sense of gloomy adventure. Although, for an album thematically set to the dark and strange world of the ocean abyss, I would have expected a bit more atmosphere. The tone is suitably solemn, for sure, but it doesn’t quite manifest a feeling of the pressure of the deep, or the sounds of creatures vast and tiny moving around out of sight in the blackness, that could have made this a truly immersive experience.
Beyond The Black – Beyond The Black
Genre: Symphonic metal/hard rock
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A clean, smooth and rather straightforward symphonic metal experience with some nice melodic moments. The rhythm is quite predictable, ad although the lyrics aren’t offensively clichéd, they’re not exactly a breath of fresh air.
Crom – The Era Of Darkness
Genre: Heavy/power metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5A traditional heavy metal album that’s half playful, cheeky power metal with fantasy tendencies and half folk-leaning, slightly solemn epic ballads. There’s enough character in here that they successfully output a sound of their own, and even though the tonal approach to each song is a bit all over the place, there’s plenty of entertainment value for the adventure hungry.
Defy The Curse – Horrors Of Human Sacrifice
Genre: Death/sludge metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A naughty, crusty death metal record that seems serious on the surface, but is far too fond of bouncy rhythms to be taken with a straight face. This is fairly simple fun, with some fairly mild death metal brutality mixed with sludgy groove. There aren’t too many standout moments, and the sound could have been dirtier, but never gets boring.
Eisregen – Grenzgänger
Genre: Death/black/folk metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A rather haphazard mix of blackened death, playful folk metal and Rammstein-esque industrial. In a few ways it approaches the devil-may-care character of Finntroll, with snarly vocals, mock-spooky atmosphere and strong rock n’ roll vibes. While a bit silly, the entertainment value is not to be underestimated.
Gyaos:Diabolical – In Accordance With The Prophecy
Genre: Thrash/industrial/black metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A riotous, blunt instrument assault of blackened thrash with an industrial delivery. There’s clearly a message in the madness, and in that regard it feels a bit like a hardcore record. Variety is not this one’s strongest suit, and after a little while it gets hard to tell the songs apart.
HolyName – HolyName
Genre: Metalcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Solemn, modern metalcore ready to well over you in waves of djent-fueled aggression and near-meditative stretches of introspective, calming melody. Whether the two mix well is debatable, but the tone is very consistent. If you enjoy the sound and the message, then you’ll probably appreciate all of it. If not, you might very well find it kind of forgettable.
Obituary – Dying Of Everything
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5Some times you just want a band to know instinctively what you want them to sound like (no, not always). No need for any big surprises. Obituary is one of those bands, and their intuition doesn’t fail them this time around either. While this is the classic, axe-swinging meat grinder all the way, they found some room for groove, which’ll have you pendulum-banging your head through one song after another. The tempo is mid to low, but it never feels like there’s glue in the gears, even when they slow things down to near-funeral doom in select sections. It’s smooth, perhaps a bit too much so, but the fact that these guys can still whip up such a shining example of how to make a distinct-sounding old school death metal album, without putting the recording mic inside a cardboard box, is just such a positive reinforcement of the rock-solid state of the genre today.
Highlights: “My Will to Live” and “War”.
Polar – Everywhere, Everything
Genre: Hardcore/alternative metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5This album feels a bit like tearing open an old wound. There’s rawness and hurt, and a fair bit of anger. They play around with the rhythms a fair bit on this one, although the soundscape remains fairly familiar to those well traveled in this particular musical territory.
Screamer – Kingmaker
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5A peppy, modern-retro heavy metal offering from Sweden. It’s got some of the epic, bold elements of the likes of Manowar, but also some of the sass and simplicity of the Hellacopters. The overall sound feels fine-tuned and honed, so there should be little question of the commitment to the niche. It’s definitely a feelgood album brimming with new-school nostalgia, throwing itself into catchy, rousing melodies and playful guitar work, albeit with a tasteful amount of restraint.
ten56. – Downer Part 2
Genre: Deathcore/nu metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5An interesting melding of deathcore brutality, hip-hop rhythms and a small dose of R&B melodic sensibilities. Mostly it’s fairly artificial-sounding, pounding heaviness, like glitching, computer-controlled heavy machinery lashing at you. Some personality gets lost in the processing of it all, but it’s great if you just want something to shake your eardrums and sound modern while doing it.
Turmion Katilot – Omen X
Genre: Industrial/disco metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Here’s your slice of rave-ready, snarling, Finnish blackened-ish disco-industrial metal, cause why the hell not? Sure, it doesn’t make a ton of sense (or does it?), but that’s hardly the point. If you’re like me, who wants your silly metal to still be heavy and aggressive enough that you can un-ironically headbang to it till you’re drunk enough to go improvise dance moves in the moshpit, then this should get you going.
Highlights: “Pyhä Kolminaisuus” and “Isä Meidän”.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
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Weekly rundown January 06 – 2023
Black and dark metal sweep in from the tail end of last year, crossing the threshold of 2023 like an icy gust from a door left open. But there is also more vibrant life peeking out from below the layer of frost.
Abysm – Sol Invictus (EP)
Genre: Thrash/melodic death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Starting the year with some thrashiness in the vein of Testament mixed with old school melodeath. It’s got a suitable darkness and morbidity to it, although the tone feels cold, almost touching on black metal. The performances leave a little to be desired, but the enthusiasm is certainly there.
Ancient Ruins – Hexahedron
Genre: Heavy/doom metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5A heavy metal solo project that scores highest with the originality factor. It mixes adventurous riff harmonies with a doomy atmosphere and snarly, harsh vocals. Unfortunately, the arrangements end up feeling fairly clumsy, and so you stumble your way through the album rather than flow.
Bereave – Bereave (EP)
Genre: Melodic death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A three song EP with some very proficiently performed melodeath in the vein of Mors Principium Est. If you dig Finnish melodeath, you’re gonna dig this. Heavy riff gallops, plenty of playful melody and groove. What you don’t get a ton of, unfortunately, is character, and so this gets a bit lost in the release maelstrom.
Celestial Shadows – The Tragedy of Calufrax
Genre: Experimental black metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Synth-infused, atmospheric, spooky-toned black metal with muted vocals. You get several intrumental tracks and some fairly aggressive ones that sounds like they’ve been sand-blown to the bone production wise. Characterful, although not particularly powerful.
Concrete Age – Bardo Thodol
Genre: Groove/folk metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Who would think that Buddhist-themed metal would sound like this? You’d probably expect something serene, in the vein of chilled-out Devin Townsend, with an Eastern flavor. Well, the flavor is certainly there, in the form of Russian/Eastern folk elements, but this is far from tranquil. The aggressive stuff is up there with the heaviest groove bands, and the rest brings some properly entertaining folk/power metal energy without ever getting cheesy. Perhaps not as bold as there is potential for, but I bet it’s a ton of fun live.
Highlights: “Purity” and “Bezdna ot Ludost”.
Decortication – Necrolatry: A Morbid Worship
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Filthy, gritty death metal with a barebones, chaos-inclined kind of expression. You get moments of groove and fist-balling evil, but mostly it’s fairly run-of-the-mill.
Hand of Doom – Stray from the Path
Genre: Melodic death/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 2/5
Objective rating: 3/5An atmosphere-leaning, yet high-tempo melodeath album with a lean sound and affinity for primitive thrash riffing. What I can’t tell is if the drums are meant to be that off-beat, but I don’t think it works in either case.
Horre – Kuumet
Genre: Atmospheric doom metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Some wispy, echoing-through-the-fog funeral doom with low, spectre-growl vocals and a synth-generated atmosphere. The experience is consistently melancholic without feeling too static or repetitive, and there are faint glimmers of light in the gloom every now and then.
The Howling Void – Into Darkness Ever More Profound
Genre: Atmospheric doom metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Here we got some funeral doom with a certain cinematic feel to it – each lengthy song describing a slight new turn in the story, or a new setting for it to play out in. The tone is not altogether tragic, and while certainly bleak at times, it seems to speak of better times both past and ahead. It’s thoroughly unhurried, with no particular changes in rhythm, and so makes for a distinctly slow-motion experience.
Iravu – A Fate Worse than Home
Genre: Progressive black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A cosmically inclined, slightly free-form black metal album with a big void in the middle of the sound, muting the vocal- and instrumental performances. The atmospheric guitar-driven melodies are bold and exploratory, and serve as the highlights of the record.
Sinusitis – Evolution Seven Gates of Hell
Genre: Death/groove metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A spirited death metal sound with a diabolical tinge and just enough groove to keep it lively. The production doesn’t do the drums any favors, but the enthusiasm still shines through, and the progression feels suitably urgent.
Throat Locust – Dragged Through Glass EP
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5A fierce death metal EP that sounds like the rusty blades of giants scraping against each other. It’s an unrelenting assault of crushing pressure from start to finish, while still taking its time to deliver some tasty morsels of crispy groove and neck-slicing guitar solos at opportune moments. There should be enough both old-school primitive and modern finesse in here to satisfy both these camps as well. Not a bad kickstart to the year.
Highlight: “Axe Grinder”.
Turpitude – Une interprétation de la dissolution glaciale en quatre mouvements
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5For an atmospheric and slightly experimental black metal record, this one certainly gets straight on with the task at hand. There are lulls in the intensity, but at no time does the progression come to a halt. The sound is fairly condensed and packed with lamenting melody, and while the variation might lie mostly in the nuances, it feels like you’re taking the full journey throughout these 4 songs.
Varmia – Prolog (EP)
Genre: Black/folk metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5Three songs of forceful, blackened folk/death metal to properly hype you for things to come. The drums thunder, guitars claw and rend, and vocals brimming with conviction demonstrate a palate of approaches that all expertly match the ritualistic tone. Makes you want to strap some bones and skulls to your battle jacket.
Highlight: “Oddal”.
Vosbúð – Heklugjá
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5An aggressive and mildly chaotic take on folk leaning black metal. The drum work gets quite interesting throughout, and they explore some strong melody lines. In the end though, the impression is that of a fairly traditional low-fi black metal record.
Zeup – Mammals
Genre: Stoner metal/rock
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Groove all day long. This is politely heavy and smooth stoner with very sparse use of vocals. It’s not in a hurry to get anywhere of importance, but if you just wanna chill with the crunch for a wile, it’s a good place to hang out.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
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Weekly rundown December 30 – 2022
For the last drop of 2022, black metal sneaks in like a malevolent shade to bring some gloom to the new year celebrations. Perhaps appealing to the typical mood of the day after.
Abysmal Lord – Bestiary of Immortal Hunger
Genre: Death/black metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5This is some properly ramshackle demonic stuff. The instrumental performances present themselves more as scare tactics than anything else, as do the vocals; gurgles, roars and snarls that all sound like they’re spat out of the pits of hell. It’s a little too messy to offer any proper immersion, but fun for the right audience.
Chabtan – Compelle Intrare
Genre: Melodic death/groove metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Here comes some fast-paced, modern melodeath out of France to show you a few tricks. It’s clear from the start that this is a band not content with sticking to the formula, while also not interested in going too far down the progressive path. Instead there are elements of thrash and groove to spice things up. There are, however, a few parts where the rhythm stumbles and the vocals don’t quite deliver, which slows everything down a bit.
Hades Descent – The Solitary Path to Armageddon
Genre: Experimental/progressive death/black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A playful mix of death, black, heavy and progressive metal with subtle style hints to the likes of Dark Tranquillity. The performances are good, not great, but there’s an enthusiasm behind it all that promises well, and the orchestral sections add a welcome grandeur.
Nocturnal Departure – Clandestine Theurgy
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Sinister and lightly unsettling black metal from Canada, or some godforsaken, depths below it, judging by the sound. It’s murky and jagged, as if hacked directly from the frozen earth. The vocals shift between screeching snarls and haunted banshee howls, and the tremolo brings on a familiar, frigid tone. While not the most precise of well-defined you’ll ever hear, the rhythm work is prevalent in a bone rattle-y kind of way that fits very well in with the overall mood. An unholy treat for a long, dark evening.
Trollcave – Rotted Remnants Dripping from the Void
Genre: Death/funeral doom metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Some distinctly low-fi death doom to close the year off. This one has a real kicking-you-while-you’re-down feel to it, heaping it on with a depressive tone and sinew-y riffs. It’s not all slow though, and not too monotone – offering up spooky atmospheric sections and galloping riff assaults. One to leave you feeling a bit uneasy.
Satanic Warmaster – Aamongandr
Genre: Melodic black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Some fairly traditional, semi-melodic black metal telling tales of death and damnation. If you’re in the mood for that sort of thing, then you’re getting an enthusiastic serving here. The atmosphere is fairly lofty, and the tempo high up until the last song.
Urns – Empyre
Genre: Doom/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5A sort of feel-good doom record with some positive gallops interrupting the slower, dragging sections. There’s plenty on interesting heavy metal instrumental antics, as well as some surprisingly aggressive turns, to keep you entertained, and an even pretend-pessimistic tone to tie it all together.
Voyage in Solitude – The Isle of Death and Rebirth
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5The band name says it all for this one – it’s an expansive journey detailing sadness and a stern, austere majesty of the passing surroundings. The atmosphere reaches up and out of the darkness, and even as there’s only ever more of the same, the intent is certainly there. The gothic melodies play a beautiful melancholy on top that is backed perfectly by icy tremolo and rocked by moments of turbulent blast beats. The theme feels medieval, but not in a tacky way, and orchestral elements lifts it out of the realm of traditional black metal conventions.
Highlights: “Miasma” and “And Meditate Through the Clouds”.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
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Weekly rundown December 23 – 2022
The second to last week of the year is a mini serving of proggy and experimental delicacies – some melodic, some dark, some outright nuts.
The Alpha Incident – Sundowner (EP)
Genre: Progressive metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5When you find a release of progressive metal as varied as this, that doesn’t sound like something the band made up as they went, you better pay attention. Even as they weave in and out of styles and levels of intensity, it never ends up feeling like an extended jam session. You get the aggressiveness of the likes of Periphery, but also more conventional melodic death/groove styles. And in between are more atmospheric, lyric-focused parts that stretches the tone as far as it will go without breaking the overall coherence. An impressive display of creativity and musicianship.
Brandon Cambridge – Celestial Quest II: Prophecy of the Nova Queen
Genre: Progressive metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A progressive dive into retro-spacey realms. It sounds like it was made in the 80s/90s, but with an obvious nostalgia towards digital sonic experiences of that time added on to it. It’s all instrumental, and not the tightest stuff you’ll ever hear, but there are some genuinely exciting heavy/doom-influenced moments in there that might be worth waiting for.
The Crippler – I’m Just Gonna Let Myself In
Genre: Grindcore/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A gory, slasher-themed ride powered by saw-toothed riffs. It punches you in the gut like grindcore is supposed to, then lures you back into striking distance with some tasty thrash groove. The craftmanship is a little slap-dash, but if the roughness floats your boat, then you’re in for some good fun.
Liv Moon – Our Stories
Genre: Symphonic metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Some mildly progressive symphonic metal with a pronounced use of violin. It takes a few twists and turns and displays some real instrumental talent, but for the most part is traditional enough that it might be the soundtrack to an anime.
Order Of Nosferat – Vampiric Wrath Unleashed
Genre: Black/noise metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5This is semi-melodic black metal given a synthetic, distorting treatment, to make it sound like it’s coming out of blown-out speakers with an ambient synth theme playing in the background. It kind of gets you in the mood for some dark video game fantasy, which this is the sonic equivalent to.
Rågbröder – Dadfluencer
Genre: Experimental death/black metal/punk
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3/5This is an insane album of super short songs that are rowdy to the bone and completely unbound to any one genre. For the most part is sounds like a pissed-off mix of death and black metal, but built on punk simplicity and with elements of ska, rock ‘n roll, grindcore, etc. It’s energetic, and the ambient/atmospheric elements they throw in there never last long enough to kill the momentum. It’s a spicy, kind of silly thriller to wake you up on a holiday morning.
Highlights: “Åord (Ja bara säger)” and “Konsumindre”
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
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Weekly rundown December 16 – 2022
In this episode of last ditch releases of the year we’re getting a some groove and prog highlights and otherwise a good mix of good-, and bad natured metal.
Bloodclot – Souls
Genre: Hardcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Classic hardcore with pretty noticeable Motörhead vibes. It’s fast, loud and in your face, with equal weight to attitude and rock ‘n roll groove. Nothing truly outstanding, but satisfying none the less.
Congealed Putrescence – Within The Ceaseless Murk (EP)
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Given the band name, the sound they produce should come as no surprise whatsoever. This is grimy, down-in-the-abattoir-runoff death metal with just a little room for some free standing riffs and modest melody sections.
Green King – Hidden Beyond Time
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Some highly enjoyable, slightly gritty heavy metal with a folky medieval theme going on. There’s a mild sludginess to the vocals in particular, and a hint of doom to the tone, which turns the mood away from your typical skygazing, rousing battle hymn. With two out of eight songs being interludes, there’s not a lot of content, and I’ve heard smoother instrumental work, but it works very well for what it is.
Hartlight – From Midland And Beyond
Genre: Folk metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A modest portion of tonally epic folk metal, complete with Nightwish-vibe symphonic elements, but with the rhythm of run-of-the-mill heavy metal and a very muted grandeur. If you find that this kind of stuff usually gets too lofty, then this might be more your cup of tea.
Mallus Spiritus – Vultures of Despair
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5This is black metal that likes to hide out in caves. It’s got major creeping-around-the-corner vibes, and plays around with both growly, melodic stuff the likes of early Immortal, as well as some deeper, more doomy tones. Arrangement wise it’s a bit here and there, but it sounds like they had fun making it.
Percussor – Ravenous Despondency
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5While this is clearly not the most mature musicianship out there, the intention is written all over the result, which is semi-melodic death metal with mild influxes of early Soilwork and Slipknot, although the band itself might disagree with me on that.
Vented – Cruelty And Corruption
Genre: Groove/melodic death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5You’re getting a highlights reel of different groove and melodeath influxes on this one. There’s DevilDriver, Machine Head, Lamb of God, and a little bit of Decapitated, to name a few. There’s also enough thrash in there to make sure you’re getting your constant headbang-ability, next to dry screams and clever rhythms. It feels moody, but never gets close to any kind of emotional earnestness. If a genre-sampling goodie bag is what you’re after, then you’re getting your fill. If you’re looking for something to take the subgenre in a new direction you’re not gonna find that here.
Highlights: “The End Game” and “Self Destruct”.
The Wring – Spectra
Genre: Progressive metal/rock
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Closing off this short week with some vibrant prog. You get the feeling that this is music leading the musician, and not the other way around. A tone is set, and then the rhythm skips and bounds along happily, but not so uncontrollably that the melody can’t keep up. It does trip over itself a little every now and then, but that usually just feels like flexing right before the release of a playful guitar solo. There’s not much direction, but sometimes you just gotta let go a little.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
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Weekly rundown December 09 – 2022
With the days at their darkest you might expect an overload of black and grim metal, but not all so. These slow weeks around the holidays are an excellent time for untested flavors to pop their head out and be sampled.
Deathless Legacy – Mater Larvarum
Genre: Heavy/gothic metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Melodic and fairly streamlined gothic-tinged heavy metal with symphonic qualities, it’s easy to picture this band thriving live. While the arrangements can get a little plain, there are several tongue-in-cheek highlights on here that brings to mind the style of Ghost.
Gomorra – Dealer Of Souls
Genre: Heavy/power metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5An excellent blend of thrash-speed heavy- and power metal, with some really tasty groove metal riffs thrown in here and there. The sentiment communicated, particularly through the lyrics, is fairly simple and predictable, but it’s hard not to be charmed by the old school style of piercing, slightly rusty vocal style and eager rhythms
Highlord – Freakin’ Out of Hell
Genre: Power metal
Subjective rating: 1.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Some semi-progressive, cosmetically rowdy power metal headed your way. Instrumentally it’s quite fun, if not particularly original, but some of the vocal harmonization is just plain off.
Krilloan – Emperor Rising
Genre: Power metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Here’s one for the D&D enthusiasts. This is properly nerdy, unapologetically epic fantasy power metal with some pretty tasty solo parts. It’ll be great live, and get you in the mood for (non-kinky) role playing at home.
Legendarium – Death’s Hand In Yours
Genre: Heavy/folk metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Fantasy-themed heavy metal with elements of folk, black and doom. The production and performances are close to basement quality, but still outputs a captivating, mystical tone, although the vocal quality is punk-caliber, which isn’t nearly matched with the same level of roughness by the instruments, and so feels a bit jarring.
Lionheart – Welcome To The West Coast III
Genre: Hardcore
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Some classic LA hardcore beatdown to shake up the Christmas tranquility. The rhythm is exactly as stompy as you want it to be, and the riffs, although not as raw in tone as might be appropriate, still produce that undeniable, full-body headbanging groove on every single song. There are a bunch of guests on here – none that really take the music near the boundaries of its comfort zone – but still a welcome flavor boost. With the guitars like axe chops and vocal delivery like nail guns, you’re in for a good time.
Highlights: “DEATH COMES IN 3’S” and “AT WAR WITH THE GODS”.
Ploughshare – Ingested Burial Ground
Genre: Ambient death/noise metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5We all need a little nightmare fuel in our music from time to time. This has got spooky, droning synths and other disturbing elements churning around the soundscape, overlaying muted harsh vocals, doomy guitars and a prominent bass. The noise level is fairly high, and replaces much of the actual instrumental work. The second half is all (even more noisy) collab remixes of the first five songs, so in essence this is an EP.
Ready For Death – Ready For Death
Genre: Thrash metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Postapocalyptic hardcore built around thrash metal riffing sounds like an appealing concept, and these guys have made some interesting choices with it. This is not a straightforward, mindless riff-fest, but rather an exploration of how different rhythms and techniques can push the same general tone in different directions. The production is suitably muddled, and some of the most memorable songs have a very old school feel. It’s rough and rowdy, with a slight influx of grindcore distain for melodic sensibilities, which suits the theme just fine.
Highlights: “Savior Sinner” and “Worldwide Blackout”.
Sacrilegion – From Which Nightmares Crawl
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Lightly crisped death metal with noticeable thrash sensibilities to its riffing. Once they get past the obligatory uncontrolled blast beating, you get some really quite enjoyable, crunchy guitar work infused with melodeath groove. There are, however, very few characteristic elements to distinguish it in a heavily populated subgenre.
Twisted Mind – From Slave To Prophet (EP)
Genre: Hard rock/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Vibrant, catchy hard rock-y heavy metal with an oriental flavor. There is obvious vocal and songwriting talent on display here, and although this is quite accessible stuff, it never feels superficial. The instrumental work is appropriately varied and purposeful, and doesn’t always take the path of least resistance.
Woods Of Desolation – The Falling Tide
Genre: Atmospheric black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5This is melancholic black metal centered around some really rather gentle and dreamy atmosphere, allowing your mind to wander out over open, calm waters even as a storm of tremolo and blast beats churns in the background, just out of sight. It’s a tone that’ll kindle your sadness but keep you afloat all the way. The instrumental work is tight and beautifully mixed with the more ambient elements, keeping up the momentum without breaking the deep immersion. The hoarse-gurgly vocal style takes a little getting used to, but certainly adds character.
Highlights: “Illumination” and “The Falling Tide”.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
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Weekly rundown December 02 – 2022
The first of the more meagre December weeks has a handful of progressive highlights on offer, as well as some diamonds in the rough.
Acid Blade – Power Dive
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 2/5
Objective rating: 3/5Another slice of the classic metal renaissance – this is a German variant with particularly high pitched (and fairly disharmonious) vocals, eager rhythms and a light layer of psychedelia.
Blame Kandinsky – Exlectic Ruiner
Genre: Hardcore/mathcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5An intricate dance of skittish rhythms, mellow melodies and constantly aggressive vocals. The riff attacks carry with them a good deal of dissonance, but not so much that they throw you off. Certain songs build up to more worthwhile highs than others, and while it’s all well crafted, there’s a lasting impression of randomness.
Celestial Season – Mysterium II
Genre: Atmospheric doom metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5While not quite at the near-standstill pace of funeral doom, this is not far off. There’s a definite sense of sorrow and lamenting to the melodies, and the large parts of the album that are entirely instrumental feel like equal parts darkened folk epics and eulogies for a bygone past.
Deströyer 666 – Never Surrender
Genre: Black/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5While not radical in any way, this is a slightly different approach to your typical blackened thrash. There is a high concentration of march-to-war melodic death metal riff- and rhythm techniques, and the tremolo melodies dip into a rousing folk tone that’s designed to get a collective mood fired up rather than just the individual. While the strongest songs are clustered towards the first half of the album, they keep the momentum going until the last, which brings the experience to a slightly solemn end.
Highlights: “Guillotine” and “Pitch Black Night”.
Dystopia A.D. – Doomsday Psalm
Genre: Melodic/progressive death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A bit of an odd melodeath experience that, despite impressive technicality and a talent for atmosphere-building melody, never really gets going. Most of the songs feel like long and meticulous buildups that never really reach a peak. It’s definitely material with potential.
Gavran – Indistinct Beacon
Genre: Atmospheric sludge/doom metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5There’s a veil to pierce in order to truly get to the heart of this one. Long, dragged-out sections of slow riffs and head-down melodies supported by disharmonious vocals very gradually build up to fairly hostile highs of harsh-fuzz riffing. The groove tends to make up for the dissonance though, so it’s certainly not without its reward.
Hammers Of Misfortune – Overtaker
Genre: Progressive/heavy metal/rock
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5Are you a fan of old school prog rock but wish they’d bring more fun, grit and speed into it? This should thoroughly sate that particular craving. What you get is a bonkers mix of playful thrash riffage, utterly dazed and confused progressions and just the right amount of heaviness not to depart from the core concept into something that would be too easily defined. All throughout the experience they keep toying with your expectations – ducking in and out of morphing parallel avenues of approach while a strong, consistent stylistic magnetism keeps it all from floating apart.
Highlights: “Don’t Follow the Lights” and “Orbweaver”.
Heron – Empires of Ash
Genre: Sludge/doom metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A supremely crust-fuzzy sludge record with a doomy garage rock kind of feel. There is not much sense of urgency, which I suppose isn’t the point, but the power behind the rhythmic progression feels like it’s constantly om the edge of failing.
Ihma Tarikat – Hearts Unchained – At War with a Passionless World
Genre: Black metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5With atmospheric and melodic tendencies, a gritty vocal style and muted blast beats and tremolo, this is a meld of two worlds – the harsh down-to-earthness of sludgy hardcore and the horizon-gazing of mildly exploratory melodic black metal. It’s not the most elegant of joinings, but it produces some real highlights.
Nihilist Death Cult – Death To All Tyrants
Genre: Death metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5You might experience a mild case of deja vu sampling the selection of songs on this gritty death metal record, as the rhythms are – perhaps not surprisingly considering the style – quite similar. This is short and sweet fun though, blasting through 9 songs in less than 15 minutes, so you don’t really have time to get hung up on the lack of variation. And the entertainment value is great.
Obvurt – Triumph Beyond Adversity
Genre: Progressive/technical death metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5An at first rather complicated and black-toned tech death album, it loosens up a bit as you go, venturing into slightly more traditional territory from the middle and out. Not that it gets any less technically impressive though. While not quite as tight as some of the greats of the subgenre, this is still eager, inventive and in service to the overall mood, which is much more important for a fresh band like this. They play with progressive rhythms, a bit of dissonance and brutal heaviness, while mostly remaining melodic.
Highlights: “Renverser L’adversité” and “Versus”.
Opus Arise – The Network
Genre: Progressive/orchestral metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A rather technical, zig-zagging approach to orchestral metal. This is an instrumental album, so relying on the instruments to tell the story. The arrangements are engaging, but the execution isn’t always up to snuff, inviting disharmony that detracts slightly from the experience.
Shining Wizard – Tournament Of Death (EP)
Genre: Grindcore/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A fairly no-nonsense, grindy death metal album with snarling vocals and hardcore rhythms. It’s uncomplicated fun that’s executed well.
Swept To Sea – Tides (EP)
Genre: Metalcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Classic metalcore with a distinct As I Lay Dying-feel, though not quite at that level of performance. Lacking a little groove, this still offers up some engaging, melodic riffing and a vocal style blissfully lacking in sappiness.
T.O.M.B. – Terror Winds
Genre: Black/noise metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5A black metal record that, if the noise had more of a natural feel, might sound like it was recorded in windy conditions, and so be more in stylistic theme with the title. . Still, it quite successfully conjures up an atmosphere of bleak damnation, and offers nuanced variation in rhythm and tone.
Vis Mystica – Celestial Wisdom
Genre: Symphonic/power metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5A storytelling kind of symphonic metal record that, while being technically fairly formulaic, offers up a few different flavors in vocal style and tone, partially thanks to a selection of guest artists. It feels vibrant, epic, and theatrical in the right kind of way.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
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Weekly rundown November 25 – 2022
A charge of charred attitude – thrash and black metal spearheads this week. Expect both sullen atmosphere and riffalicious hellraisers, along with some other truly outstanding releases.
Black Lava – Soul Furnace
Genre: Black/death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5This one tries to exist just enough outside the black metal norm that it sticks out, and in certain ways it does. There are elements of death, hardcore and doom, but they are used with restraint. The vocals are coarse and there is just enough black ‘n roll groove to keep the momentum up during the mid-tempo sections. And still it doesn’t quite sound like a finished style.
Djevel – Naa Skrider Natten Sort
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5If you’re all about that cold, lamenting tremolo melody, then this should be right up your fjord. Devil is unleashing more gloomy, part-atmospheric Norwegian black metal upon the world, and for fans of the traditional sound, this is particularly excellent news. You get a bit of the frosty folk tones mixed in, and even though the tempo is mostly moderate, the rhythms and lofty background notes provide the whole thing with a skeletal majesty. No leaps or bounds are made, but its stylistic consistency is second to few.
Highlights: “Naa Skrider Natten Sort” and “I Daudens Dimme Natt”.
Depressive Witches – Distant Kingdoms
Genre: Black ‘n roll/folk metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Here to show you that the frigid world of medieval black metal can also be fun, this band has released a rowdy rock ‘n roll take on it, that still stays true to the folk-inspired tone and incorporate the appropriate croaking vocal style and gothic mood. The instrumental work is a bit slapdash, but that’s almost to be expected.
(Echo) – Witnesses
Genre: Atmospheric doom/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5An expansive doom record with aggressive elements from death and black metal. There are progressive elements to it as it winds up to and down from highs of heavy, crushing riffs. The rest is long/stretched atmosphere that goes on for quite a bit, and slows the momentum to a halt. There are interesting elements along the way, but it takes a bit to get to them.
Elder – Innate Passage
Genre: Progressive/psychedelic metal/rock
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 5/5When a band releases an album with songs exclusively over 8 minutes in length, you think to yourself that this is likely 80% atmosphere, thematic filler content and buildups. Not so with Elder. Whichever point you decide to skip to in any of these songs, something new and near instantly immersive is going on. Each song feels like a journey on its own, and in a distinctly different direction than the last, although very much inside the same world. Overall it feels gentle and highly organic, with drums, bass and guitars alike speaking to you in a language of their own. This is progressive music in a very genre-unbound sense of the word, with an intensity level dialed perfectly in between rock and metal.
Highlights: “Coalescence” and “Merged In Dreams – Ne Plus Ultra”
Euphrosyne – Keres (EP)
Genre: Black/gothic metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5This takes the aggressive bombast of symphonic black metal in the style of Septicflesh and adds one layer of atmosphere and another of restrained gothic gloom. And then some sax sprinkled on top (which, frankly, I’ve had my fill of as a “progressive” element to dark metal). It’s very well produced and spends enough time with each flavor to show off the band’s talent for variety.
Hibernus Mortis – The Monoliths Of Cursed Slumber
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Some demonic death metal coming at you from within a thick fog. It’s dark, heavy and lightly chaotic, with a slight penchant for old school melodeath riffs and a bit of fuzz to the tone. Other than the fact that it’s well performed, there in honestly little to distinguish it among its peers.
High Command – Eclipse Of The Dual Moons
Genre: Thrash/death metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5The mix of thrash and death metal doesn’t usually go like this. More often than not the brutality is front and center, and the thrash elements work mostly as a speed pill to propel things along at a higher pace. On this one however, thrash is in the driver’s seat, and the death metal elements, which are very much of the old school variant, function like a grimy texture to grease the gears and provide more of an imposing impact. This thing is a riot from start to finish. What I particularly appreciate is the fact that some of the coolest songs appear in the second half of the album, making for a very strong close to the experience.
Highlights: “Imposing Hammers of Cold Sorcery” and “Fortified in Bloodshed”.
Induction – Born From Fire
Genre: Power/symphonic metal
Subjective rating: 2/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Entertaining for sure, in a popcorn-movie kind of way, this is epic, riff-and-synth driven power metal with highly clichéd lyrical content and rhythms out of Eurovision.
In The Woods… – Diversum
Genre: Progressive folk/black metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5Emerging from the rain-soaked, winter-grey, rugged Scandinavian hillscape, this thing brings a bit of that Opeth vibe to a subdued folk-infused black/death metal sound. A distinct vocal flavor and non-traditional approach to progressive arrangements sets this apart in the world of dark prog metal. You get melancholic black metal grandeur, death metal brutality, folk-melodic immersion and a good portion of doomy atmosphere. What’s not to like?
Highlights: “The Malevolent God” and “Moments”.
Judicator – The Majesty Of Decay
Genre: Progressive/power metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5This one took me by surprise. Not only is it impressively tight and vibrant – it keeps evolving and adding new elements, especially towards the middle and onwards. Sure, there are several progressive- and power metal genre-bound elements at its core that makes it fairly easy to place, but what’s the matter with that when it’s as alive and playful as this? Heck, it’s such a positive and uplifting experience overall, and then you get straight up black metal tremolo riffing on “Ursa Minor”. The drumming is wild, the vocals versatile and guitars utterly genre fluid, all the while adhering effortlessly to the overarching tone.
Highlights: “Daughter of Swords” and “The Black Elk”.
Karg – Resignation
Genre: Atmospheric black metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5This sounds like a marriage of atmospheric black metal, progressive melodeath and artsy hardcore. It’s four long songs of sad melodies and some extreme metal harshness. I imagine it can be quite gripping if it hits you right. The shouted spoken-word vocal style is not for me, but that’s a personal preference.
Katapult – Play Stupid Games, Win Stupid Prizes
Genre: Thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Here we have some Swedish/Swiss thrash leaning slightly into extreme metal, with harsh vocals and fairly heavy guitar work. There are traces of Swedish melodeath all over it, but they keep the tempo and attitude up all along. Enjoyable, if not particularly distinct.
The Last Ten Seconds Of Life – Disquisition On An Execution (EP)
Genre: Deathcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Addicted to kick drum? Get your fix here, and then some. This sounds like the goal was to make it as heavy of a deathcore iteration as possible, with beastly vocals and massive chugs. And yes, insane kick drumming. The shock and awe value is definitely there, if not a lot of finesse, but that’s hardly what you’re looking for in this subgenre. Although brutality for the sake of it can get a little substance-lacking in the long run.
League Of Distortion – League Of Distortion
Genre: Pop/alternative power metal
Subjective rating: 2/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Cosmetically edgy, style-focused stuff that’s basically radio friendly alt rock with heavier riffs. It’s got some decent hard-rock-y moments in the vein of Halestorm.
Leather – We Are The Chosen
Genre: Heavy/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A cool melding of old school classic and thrash metal, played mostly at mid-tempo and with a good amount of groove. The forced vibrato on every single vocal high gets to be too much for me though, and the choruses really tend to kill the momentum.
Lykotonon – Promethean Pathology
Genre: Industrial black/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5This has one foot firmly planted in that black, jagged place that’s only meant to disturb you. The tone, rhythms and vocal style are all hostile in a sinister kind of way, and it switches between lurking in the gloom, knife in the dark and hammer blow in broad daylight. It’s not enormously rewarding beyond that experience of mild terror, but it’s well crafted.
Maceration – It Never Ends
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Here we got some straight up modern horror death with a bit of a blackened tinge to it. The tone, which is that classic eerie death metal vibe, is firmly set from the get go, and doesn’t change for the duration, which does cast everything in light monotony. But if this expression is what you’re craving, then you’re getting the goods here.
Mycelium – Mycoticism
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5This one’s pure nastiness. Crusty, slightly muted, grinding death metal that’s all about decay. Fitting, considering the fungal nature of the band name. Some parts of the album feel fairly formulaic, but they’re clearly really committed to the style, and then you get some moments of raw, badass riffery that’s just bound to please.
Oceans – Hell Is Where The Heart Is – Part III: Clarity (EP)
Genre: Progressive metalcore/deathcore
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5The final chapter in the “Hell is Where the Heart Is” EP trilogy has arrived, and it’s a two-sided experience. The intensity increases the further in you go, starting with an interlude and ending on straight up melodic deathcore. The tone is very familiar Oceans style, and the melodies are as melancholic as ever. There is a certain artificiality to the heaviness with the synth-backed riffs, but if you’re already into the band then you’ll probably enjoy each aspect of the experience equally.
Rienaus – Luciferille
Genre: Black metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Black metal with a sinister, raw tone to the guitar work and a kind of cursed folk vibe. It’s a bit messy in its execution, doesn’t have too many standout tracks, and the rather monotonous vocal style can get tiring.
Spiritworld – Deathwestern
Genre: Thrash metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4/5If you’re thinking that mixing a shameless amount of that wicked Slayer guitar tone with a brick load of hardcore grit sounds like a great idea, then you’d be goddamn right. This is an outright riff orgy, powered by a relentless attitude engine like that of Hatebreed. The western theme gets a little lost in the heat of battle, which is a bit of a shame, and I find myself craving just a tad more atmosphere, which might have elevated it to another level. But if a neck wringer of an adrenaline ride is what you’re looking for then you could hardly do better than this.
Highlights: “Relic of Damnation” and “Moonlit Torture”.
Terrörhammer – Gateways To Hades
Genre: Speed/black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Get ready for a wave of sympathetic wrist cramps. Ultra fast riffing mixes with muted black metal screems, a fuzzy bass and drums that are a little out of control. if you’ve heard blackened speed metal before, you’re honestly not in for any surprises, but as a genre beast it’s a fine specimen.
Toxic Youth – Back to You-th
Genre: Hardcore/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5With a recognizable style and a bit of thrash umph to top it all off, this is an old-schooler street stomper with a heart of pure punk rock.
Witchmaster – Kaźń
Genre: Blackened death/thrash metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A venom-spitting, teeth grinding, war declaration of a thrash-y blackened death album. There’s plenty of blast beats, tremolo squeals and bloodthirsty vocals, and guitar groove all the way through. The thrash guitar tone unfortunately gets to be a little tame compared to everything else, which robs some of the ferocity, but it’s still a good time.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
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Weekly rundown November 18 – 2022
As we start to slow down with the approach of Christmas, there are still some major titles to explore. Alternative and doom metal in particular are having a surge this week.
-(16)- – Into Dust
Genre: Sludge metal
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5This album manages the golden feat of delivering both familiar, pleasing genre elements as well as stimulating variations on the formula. There’s never any doubt that this is crushing, raspy sludge to its very core, but they change it up with groovy fun, a bit of hardcore speed ramps and the occasional rhythmic acrobatics display. The tone is nice and dark, which contributes to making it feel lead heavy all the way through, but it never gets stuck in a mire of heel dragging ponderousness, which helps the progression immensely and leaves you wanting more at the end.
Highlights: “Misfortune Teller” and “The Floor Wins”.
Amon Acid – Cosmogony
Genre: Doom/psychedelic metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Think doomy psychedelia with a bit of a middle Eastern vibe, and chances are good you got this one nailed down before you even start. The guitars are just the right level of fuzzy, the vocals slightly muted and the tempo mid to low. A tad predictable, but still quality.
Astrosaur – Portals
Genre: Progressive/doom metal
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5This album gives me some of the same vibes as I got from Enslaved’s Utgard (absolutely love that album), but this is even less genre bound than that. It feels like undertaking a cosmic journey, and certainly not one zipping soundlessly through the vast nothingness. There are events to behold and places to visit. You get a host of different flavor inputs – heavy riffing, adventurous shreds, utterly organic rhythms, tons of atmosphere, dissonance and harmony, darkness and light. It’s all instrumental, but you hardly notice, cause this music speaks.
Highlights: “The Deluge” and “Reptile Empire”.
Aurora Borealis – Prophecy is the Mold in Which History is Poured
Genre: Death/black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Very intense and and direct blackened death metal that sounds a bit like some of Behemoth’s early stuff sped up. It borders on technical, and is indeed well performed, but sounds thematically a bit nondescript, and the tone could have been better communicated by them slowing down every now and then.
Avandra – Prodigal
Genre: Progressive metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5A bit of an odd mix leaves this mostly serene progressive album with vocals obscured behind bass, distracting effects and instrumental work, and riffs that feel a bit naked. The atmospheric parts are quite beautiful, but the intense ones feel like they utterly lack direction.
Blood Of The Wolf – IV: The Declaration Of War Eternal
Genre: Death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5What this bands gets the most right about this album is their sound, or rather their style. With Vader-like vocals and mildly thrash inspired, malicious-toned riffing, this homes right in on that crunchy dry sound that the likes of Endseeker employ very effectively. Now they just need to write some slightly more memorable songs.
Candlemass – Sweet Evil Sun
Genre: Doom/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5This is classic Candlemass in most of the ways that matter. You get all of the gloomy, musky-medieval-cellar tone, the driving crunch-fuzz riffs and the classic metal, ghost-story vocals on top. There are little to no surprises, but what actually detracts from the experience is how clean it sounds. With little to no background atmosphere/noise spill, the riffs and drums take on a staccato quality that makes nodding along to it feel just a little robotic. Other that that, all is well in the land of doom.
Disturbed – Divisive
Genre: Alternative metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Apart from the album title sounding like the band is either goading its critics into making puns about the predicted reception of the album, or just being butthurt about the feedback they’ve been getting on their more recent shift in sound, there isn’t all that much to remark about Divisive. It’s a slight turn towards the heaviness of the past, but really only on the surface. At its core this is accessible hard rock in wolf’s clothing. The riffs are as catchy as ever, even downright tasty at times, but the melodies are fairly bland, and some of the harmonies simply do not work.
Doomsday – Depictions Of Chaos (EP)
Genre: Thrash metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 4/5
Objective rating: 4/5All aboard the riff train! If this doesn’t give you an energy boost, you’re most likely in a coma. And deaf. This is strutting thrash with the attitude turned up to street punk. It’s highly endearing, and every aspect of the music matches the enthusiastic tempo flow perfectly. The squealing guitar bends kick in at just the right moments, and the drum fills bolster every single transition that might otherwise feel clunky. Any fan of lively metal should have fun with this one.
Highlights: “Depictions of Chaos” and “Poisoned Disorder”.
Foehammer – Monumentum
Genre: Doom/death metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5At times this thing sounds like some engine of hell played in super slow motion. In parts the engine gets to rest, and the lingering bass acts as the backdrop to some sinister atmospheric parts. The hectic drum work demands a lot of attention throughout, as the only energetic part, which highlights the fact that not a lot else is going on.
Jaded Heart – Heart Attack
Genre: Heavy metal/hard rock
Subjective rating: 2/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5Melodic heavy metal with hard rock rhythms and semi-operatic vocals that fail to completely harmonize with the instruments.
Kill Ritual – Kill Star Black Mark Dead Hand Pierced Heart
Genre: Thrash/heavy metal
Subjective rating: 2.5/5
Objective rating: 2.5/5With an album title like that you start hoping for something strutting with youthful exuberance, or at least a bit og humor. Sadly, you get neither. This is thrash bordering on heavy metal, with slightly messy arrangements and a very run-of-the-mill sound.
Rising Steel – Beyond The Gates Of Hell
Genre: Heavy metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Now for some good old fun heavy metal with a larger than life theme, catchy, thrash-like riffs and some pretty sweet solo work. The vocals are appropriately high pitched and slightly rusty and you can tell the whole band is just working to get you in the groove and nodding along.
Scars Of The Flesh – In Darkness Alone
Genre: Melodic death/black metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5Not exactly a full-length, containing only five original songs and four covers, it’s still enough to get a good taste of what this band is about. You get blackened melodeth aplenty, with just a touch of a modern, deathcore feel. It’s structured and fairly tight, for now lacking the maturity to bring it all together into something that can truly stand out, but the potential is absolutely there.
SteppenDoom – SteppenDoom
Genre: Ambient doom/folk metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3/5If The Hu is a tad too lively for you, but you really enjoy throat singing, then this might just be for you. This is dark, ritualistic, bordering on mournful doom with a strong Mongolian folk influence. A lot of it is funeral doom slow, but instead of it sounding sinister, it feels more like a chant. Foreboding, but not evil.
Tallah – The Generation Of Danger
Genre: Nu/alternatve metal/hardcore
Subjective rating: 4.5/5
Objective rating: 4.5/5This feels a lot like what Slipknot’s first album might sound like if it was made today. It’s got the same shake-you-madly-by-your-collar rhythms and demented vocal style that follow the intensity of the music perfectly, as if the instruments do nothing but project the emotions behind them. Even the drums sound the same. You get a fair bit more hardcore and deathcore influences on here though, and the band have their own quirky melodic tangents that they switch into at opportune moments, which gives this its own character. It’s heavy, its energy is infectious, and it keeps on doing new things all the way though. A very easy recommendation.
Highlights: “Shaken (not stirred)” and “Dicker’s Done”.
Threshold – Dividing Lines
Genre: Progressive metal
Subjective rating: 3/5
Objective rating: 3.5/5Melodic, expansive prog metal of the near-symphonic and shred-y kind. They’ve got some good hard rock groove in the riffs, and the synth work is vibrant. For a prog album it’s a bit straightforward, but it’s very well produced, and sounds inviting if you’re looking for a clean, uplifting, guitar driven experience.
Visceral – The Tree of Venomous Fruit
Genre: Experimental death metal
Subjective rating: 3.5/5
Objective rating: 3/5Without doing any research, this strikes me as a concept album. The tone and rhythms is chaotically organic throughout, without growing completely wild. There is a fair bit of dissonance, and both vocals and instruments sound hostile. It falls a bit in between the chairs of plain weird and standard dark death metal, not really standing out in either regard, but it’s still a bold attempt for a first album.
As always, if you think I’m completely off on an observation, unfairly dissed your favorite band or need to give an album another shot, do feel free to express yourself in the comments section below.
