Show Me the Body : "Alone Together"

 

They are pretty straightforward when they kick into things after an odd horn-heavy intro. They are like a rawer, more primitive Fugazi in some ways, with a burlier bass sound and less subtle. But I like it. "No God" finds a more staccato groove. : Good Time" finds them doing their own thing with an odd take on punk that is relevant in this post-Turnstile world we live in today, but they are not selling out. Often employing more of a metal approach and have dense sludge-tinted tones. Production is raw but clean, with a great deal of love put into this mix to give everything space.

"Dance in the USA" is a weird song; I can hear some Bad Brains influence tossed in here. There is a more downtrodden mood to "Do What's Right" that brings Iceage to mind. It sounds like he is pulling the banjo out again for "See You Again" . I appreciate the willingness to explore this dynamic, but with this minimalist drone, it puts the brakes on the momentum built. "Mileage" comes out of this with more of a driving rumble. "New Line" finds its blunt force groove in time. Though it is a little less focused than what they have done up to this point here. 

I guess you can say "Trust' is a ballad of sorts; it feels like sullen indie rock. It strums off in its own direction and does not grab me while it is headed that way. If this were DEHD, I would not even shrug at this. I can't complain about a punk band wanting to do more than just yell and bang around at high speeds. The anger on this album si tempered by the reflection of maturity. The title track closes the album with the return of the banjo. They were like fuck it, if Turnstile does not have to be bound by the definition of things like punk and hardcore, then neither do we, but let's not come across liek pussies while we are at it. I will give this album a 9.5, as it took me by surprise in more ways than one, while still packing a punch. 

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LOWSUNDAY : "Black ep"

Perhaps not as dark as some of the albums I have been digging into lately as I get ready for  Halloween, but still a form of post-punk. I would not have guessed these guys were from America, so they have successfully fooled my ears, which, given the glut of albums I listen to daily, is a feat. They capture a sound that is in a similar ZIP code to what A Place to Bury Strangers used to occupy between shoe-gaze and post-punk, but these guys have more of the mellower elements of shoegaze, where A Place to Bury Strangers was more on the noisy My Bloody Valentine side of the genre's more end. 

The lead single that opens the EP works well, as it's catchy and the vocals are more forward than some of the murk they fall into by the time they get to "Someone to Talk," which falls more closely in the direction of early Cure. There is more of a Brit-pop mood to "Shattered' which is not the Rolling Stones, but an effective song on its own right. "This is Not Heaven" drifts through the haze of its reverb-heavy guitars, with the whispered vocals falling into the back of the mix and being swallowed by the haze of dusk. 

The last song drifts by in more of a haze while I appreciate the sounds; the vocals become a moot point as they drown in the effects this album is bathed in. I generally feel like how this album is produced works more often than not, but I feel the vocals could have gotten more love, which at the end of the day would have elevated the songs; they made the choices they made for the reasons they had at the time. You never know until you hear what the raw tracks they had to work with were like.  Still is a surprisingly enjoyable album; I will give a 9 as it takes the genres they blended in different directions

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JEHOVAH ON DEATH : " Lágrimas de Oro"

This band might be branded as occult rock, which is typically focused on a more retro sound than some of these denser, more modern sounds this Greek band employs. They are very dynamic and work acoustic elements into the songs, not trying to sound like Black Sabbath. The female vocals are rather haunting, though on the opening track sit back as an alto chant. You could almsot think of this as prog rock. Though at just under six minutes, the opening song is the longest, so they do not sprawl things out, which is fine with me. The second song has an almsot 80s metal feel. Though they deviate from this one in the chorus. Lyrically darker than the music; they still have more shadow than your average rock band

For the purpose of this review, I am not counting the guitar interlude before "Catherine Wheel" as a song. It's almost like a Pat Benetar covering "Stranglehold". The multitrack vocals on the chorus are a little over the top and not likely to be replicated live. Though I can hear some Brian May influence on this one. "Suspiria" finds the chorus being more memorable than the verses, which are not dark enough for my liking, but I can hear where the Blue Öyster Cult influence is intended to be. "Blood Madonna" finds them a few notes shy of ripping off "Don't Fear the Reaper," but the song still works even with the anthemic guitar.

"Ride On Ye Furious Host" has a heavier drive to it that flirts with proto-metal. They throw in a decent gallop to throw a guitar solo over. With the title "Lord Let Me Be Your Instrument of Pain," you would think the last song would be heavier. I do like the vocal melody of it, so that balances things out. I will give this album a 9.5. I am glad it is not trying to be Ghost on the Blue Öyster Cult side of the equation.This is the occult rock revival you are looking for . Out on I Void Hanger Records. 

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DEATHGRAVE : "Hell is Evil"

 I gave 2023's "It's Only Midnight" an 8, but I have been listening to more grindcore since then, so I might have more of an appreciation when they veer off the death metal grooves into chaos. The title track that opens the album certainly falls into place better than what they did last time around, with a more polished sound in the studio. It is also three minutes, so they give themselves more time here to develop the song rather than just dealing in angry bursts. "Hard to Swallow" finds even a very dark, deliberate, doomy riff arising to lumber over things. Some of the members of Graves at Sea are in this band, so that should not be surprising. Some of the vocals sound like they could be fro ma Carnivore album they way they are shouted. 

"I am Here" takes death metal fury and runs it through a grindcore filter but with thrash attitude. Three songs in and it is very clear song writing has been made more of a priority. The vocals are more varied; there are the shrill blackened shriek and low death gurgle, but other variations on that snarled spectrum. "Born From Death " is the first song where brutality is allowed to reign over all else. With a dissonant punk riff clanging in the background at times ot break it up. "Smaller and Smaller" is darker and more harrowing as it takes things in a more sludge-ridden direction. The first five songs are already more dynamic than the last album, and this is with them even descending into blast beats on "Smaller and Smaller," which at almost four minutes is one of the album's longest songs. 

"It's Only Midnight" finds the vocals serving more purpose in the chorus to make it work and a large dose of thrash riding the song. "Yaws 3D" finds them playing a punk-tinged death metal which, in some ways, is the definition of grindcore. "You Pain is Ready" is a more extreme beating to your ears. They rip into "I Won't See You in Heaven" before the bass takes over. The dense bass tone brings things down into the doomy crush of the lingering tempo. It's darker and heavier like this than when they are spazzing out. Many moments on this album remind me of Goatwhore; when they speed up on this song, it is one of them. The last song finds them launching into rough-edged death metal but with the vocals varying in levels of coarseness, so kinda like Entombed. I will give this album a 9.5 and see how it grows on me but here is what happens when grindcore grows up.Out on Tank Crimes August 21st.  

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Sallow Moth : "Hydrophilous Brood"

 

For some reason, it was in my head that this duo was doomed, but after pressing play, I realized how mistaken I was. The reason for this being doomed might be easier to pull off with only two people; what does work here is an experimental form of high-velocity death metal that requires many overdubs. Most of the song hangs around the four- to five-minute mark, but they are cramming a great deal of chaos into that time frame. The second song really sounds no different than the first aside from a few weird jazzy breaks that sound like if Cynic smoked DMT. 

The grinding riffage they favor descended from the Morbid Angel school with slight hints of Carcass, though shifting in the riff more than either. More blast than both as well. This need for rabid speed can take away from the song, as things just become a blur. To the point that it begins to bore me in place. I like how brutal they are and the fact it's not just one long blast beat, but the songwriting is lacking; they confused arrangements with writing songs worth listening to again with memorable vocal hooks that bands like Morbid Angel and  Carcass both apply. So it is not like I am asking them to become pop music. Memorable songs should be the goal regardless of genre. 

I only knew the song had changed to "Biohybrid Virulence" due to the fact I looked up at my computer, but the guitar player gets the point I was trying to make about catchy songs, as they at least make that much of an effort.I just left this album on as I typed up my review of the new Evil Dead movie, and it faded into the background, becoming a blur of winding riffs. "Polymorphic Gnaw' is more memorable as it swirls with cosmic atmosphere and the bass wanders off into a jazzy jam while a Frank Zappa inspired riffs fughts for its life against the blast beats. This might make it the best song on the album. 

Death metal drums are supposed to be balls to the wall, but this guy needs to anchor things more than he does on the bulk of the album, beign to quick to default to a blast beat when the guitars are doing something more interesting. The title track is not too memorable. The last song trips over it's blast beaten chaos at times. The deliberate punchy riff in it is not played enough. The jazz section is a nice touch but almost too little too late. I will give this album an 8, as it's not my thing, but I at least appreciate the intensity and chops they have; fans of extreme tech death might find it to their liking.Coming out on Willotip Records. 

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VEILBURNER : "All That Glimmer is Gloam"

 Not what you would expect from American Black Metal unless you were factoring a band like Worm into the equation, as they are darker and more experimental, owing more to Mayhem, with their angular creep. They do throw blast beats into the first song, but it is already after it has been contrasted with more deliberate drumming. There is a cool unhinged element to what they do. "Oblivion is Yours to Labyrinth" finds the ghastly grumbling of the vocals sounding like their vocalist is losing his mind in the vocal booth. They pick up speed but without going into blast beats here. They flirt with prog a bit here. This can be heard in the chaos that unfolds here. This album is much more experimental than I remember them being. 

Is this album black metal? Well, it is dark so that steers them in that direction. The key here is that the songs are so interesting it does not really matter what direction they lean in genre-wise." Vitriolic  Hiss" has the dissonant riff grooving with syncopated accents. Two mintues in and they have already covered a great deal of ground. Guitar solos are more accents than showcased shredding. The vocals continue to shift through growls and moans. The vocals are really well produced, with effects making the most of the crazed sounds coming from him. It makes the album like a ride through a hsunted house.

You are four songs in before they hit you with blast beats. The vocals are so feral at this point it makes sense. But it's the weakest of the first four songs. In the last minute, things come together thanks to some cool riffs. Then they come at you from the other end of the spectrum with some dark melodic vibes that are more sung over, but the vocals sit back in reverb. Odd electronics also color things to make "Dis Obedient Woe" perhaps the album's best song.They take a more thrashing turn for "Goslave and Blood Mortar". It is ne of the more straight-up metal moments. "A Seance to Specter" works off a more atmospheric weirdness, creating it's throb. This transitions into a more furious burst of black metal and then ebbs back and forth between the two dynamics. 

They are less kind to your ears on"Golgothic Holocaust". They double down on the blast mcnasty here, midway in the drop, down to more of a half time groove that feels darker and heavier. The demonic declarations continue, forming an effective narrative for this album. The title track closes things out. It is more riff-oriented and deliberate, with vocals not sung but holding more purpose in the darker shadow the song casts. I will give this album a 9 and see how it grows on me; it is one of the more original metal albums I've heard in a minute. This drops October 16th on Transcending Obscurity Records. 

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Attic Frost : "...And Some Will Meet Their Shadow"

 

Not our first dance with this German project, as we reviewed their 2023 album "A heart is the deepest dungeon", I was less impressed by that one, as it scored a 7 due to being plagued with production issues and the songs just bored me. They have more energy and emotion invested this time around that add urgency to "Partytime", which is not the 45 Grave song. The synths do still tend to creep up and obscure things in the mix. 'The Void Inside Her Head" uses atmospheric guitar, but the synths are the backbone of this album. They mope on this one, and the beat drags with a more depressive flavor. The pace picks up when the more sardonic post-punk vocals come in. One of the improvements with this album is that three songs in, it is evident they are trying to cover a broader range. There is a murky mi here, but it gives some charater.

"Further Down" sounds liek they might have even brought in a drummer, or the programming has improved. The bass line gives things some balls. The bass line also leads "Trust" in a more melancholy direction like "Faith" era Cure. The vocals fall into the mix in a manner that echoes from the back of the stage rather than fronting the band; the tempo shift in this one feel arbitary. Though I understand why they are building things sonically here, "An Outry" moves at more of a punk pace. They needed this most organic touch they did not have before, so this works even if it is not the most original thing.

"Promise Me" guides you back to the intersection when post-punk gave way to its darker emotions to create goth. This will once again bring the Cure to mind. There are some good creepy chords in this one. I liek the darker almsot deathg rock slant to "When the Night Calls".  "A Familar Sound" is aptly titled as it is a return to the more morose early Cure sound. The mix here is too murky for their own good. The drumming takes an odd turn midway in as well. "Fading Echo" closes the album with a little more of a new wave-ish touch. The more depressive ure influence returning. This album is a hug improvement over the lat album I checked out so I will give it a 9. 

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