Showing Teeth : " A Fate Worse Than Loneliness"

 This is a solo artist who works with session musicians. This would not be odd if it were a pop artist, but instead it's a commentary on where the genre is heading. She has a very specific vocals paproach that is not broken up with clean sining until the second song. Her clean vocals are the kind of smooth pop hook that we now expect from the pop-focused corner of the genre that is spreading the fastest; you can hear Spiritbox influence in this but without the same scope of songwriting. My first thought was this was being done by AI, as it takes a middle-of-the-road approach even at its angriest. 

"Make It Out" employs more groove. The pop vocals lead the way here; the chorus is not as explosive, and the song itself backs away from the metallic approach until midway in and then it feels predictable. She has a decent voice but is not Courtney.  Laplante has a more defined personality. Once we get to 'Rip," things take more ofa turn toward generic. There is a more technical aspect to the riffs bringing the chaos to this one that jerks you around a bit. 

"Shallow Grave" finds the screaming and chugging back in place.     It really does feel heavy or hooky at this time as it follows the formula KillSwitch Engage laid out over 20 years ago. "Paradigm' closes the album out. It's a ballad that finds you waiting for the other shoe to drop, because you know it will, as it's basically a power ballad. A pop beat comes in to keep it moving before the guitar comes in.  Like Nostradamus, my prophecy comes true, and the harsh vocals come in before the song ends. This drops on Spinefarm September  4th, and I am sure she will be hitting the big rock fest circuit stages. I will give ths album a 8.5, as it is effective at what it does. 

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Taake : "En skog av nidstang"

 

This is the Norwegian project's 9th album. It finds Hoest continuing to perfect his take on the country bision of black metal with chilling riffing employed in a somewhat jarringly dissonant fashion on the opening track. I have not paid attention to the lyrics, which are normally screamed in a fairly incomprehensible manner. It seems to be nature based mytholgy draped in metaphor.  The second song has an equally intense static build of tremolo-picked guitars that plays it closer to the traditional expectations of the genre. The drums are largely buried in the mix. 

Drummer Rune has played with him for seven years, making him familar with the chaos this music tends to unfurl.  This one carries more drone than the opening track. The bu blurs into the background as the rabid picking falls into a wave of sound. More straightforward than what I expect from this project who has often thought out side the box to create more memorable black metal in the past. "Engler" finds more purpose in the drums slowing down and building a more epic nood. The drummer provides the space needed to do so. The scathing scowl of the vocals feels more uniform on this album. At the four-minute mark, I am surprised that I still have five minutes to go as I can not fathom how that is going to happen given what the song has become.The song deconstructs and builds back into some thing more tortured heading into the six minute mark.

The last song opens with a eeire guitar line before going into what I think of as the triumphant black metal gallop, though there is a darker slant this time around, This album feels like it carriesa rawer edge. production wise.With this comesa more traditional black metal feel.At two minutes in things break down for more melodic speculation to create more of the experimental feel.Certainly a better choice than more blast beats and adding more nuance to the album without backing down from it's confrontational nature. I will give this album a 9, it holds up against this porjects body of work and gives black metal fans what they want in a manner that's more than the status quo for the genre.

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Russian Circles : "Nine"

 As a singer, it's hard to sell me on instrumental bands, but there are a few exceptions, this band being one. Melodic guitar playing and a bit of a metallic drive make them more memorable. I think Pelican was the first band I was introduced to doing this sort of thing, though I was already a fan of Mogwai; those guys were more atmospheric drug music. Russian Circles blends both worlds. Some albums have been heavier than others; some found them almost wanting to lean in a black metal direction, when if they had a burly lumberjack barking in the background, they would be a sludge band. The hammering of the second song, "Empath," lends weight to this theory. The dense guitar sound creates a sonic wall that closes in on you.

At eight and a half minutes, 'Eluvial' leans more toward their atmospheric side, which is more typical of the post-rock genre. But it is kept balanced here and still makes for an effective listen that hooks you in without the benefit of vocal hooks. There is a similar vibe later on with "Meridian," though that one is a little more brooding and melancholic. 'E2" has some cool electronic sounds in its pulse, which finds the band mixing it enough to keep you interested. The only time they drone is on "Meridian" 

The last song ends with more of a heavy crunch; the only issue with this is that when I just left it playing, the stream started back on the first song, and I could not tell that it had changed songs which for me as a red flag that the songs sound the same; granted, when it comes to instrumental music, this is one of the more common problems, there were only a couple moments where I felt like they were doing something new, but when they do what they do they do it well, so fans might just have asound they want more than soungs, They are skilled at this and made the album they sought to make so I will give it a 9.5. Not sure how many times I will revisit this album, but post-rock fans should make it required listening.Drops August 28th on Sargent House. 

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Kulk : "Choosing to Die"

 

This British band thinks of itself as doom; well, perhaps their record label wants to market them as such, as they are on Church Records, but what I am hearing is noise rock. Noise rock is having its biggest moment yet, and I think the new Chat Pile will elevate it to larger stages, so this is not the time to try to jump off that bandwagon for one that has a more settled niche. Feedback squeals and the vocals are shouted as they continue to bang on their instruments into the third song, so the first three songs run together. Granted, the minute and a half "We're Worried About You " is the song that gets lost in the shuffle as the lines are blurred as to whether it is the outro for the opening or the intro for "Being Forgotten" .

I wonder what these recording sessions were like, as it seems like msot are trying to noisegate the feedback where these two want it erupting from every chord and corner of the song. This is carried to extremes on "Collapse".  The first darker, more melodic moment is on "For Blood" , though there are still some explosive riffs that take over. 'To Take Life" finds the grooving on a pound that meets somewhere between "Filth Pig" era Ministry and early Helmet. It's more deliberate, making it one of the album's best songs so far.

"The Saddest Holiday" is not far from what they were doing in the previous song. "Ache" is more like early Swans in its bleak pulse. The vocals are barked with a similar anger. It has a more droning nature to it than the other songs. The last track is just ambient noise. I will give this album an 8, now remaking the feel here, but they do have an interesting love of feedback; they get the job done. Sure, fans of heavier noise rock like Karp should find much to love here. This album drops August 28th.

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Unteachers : "Under Bright Sadness"

 The dark, sludgey crunch these guys open their album with sets the expectations high, andd aside from the sheer weight of what they are doing, I am not sure they can write a song yet. This is leading me to believe this album is going to have a very Ministry-like sound. The second song finds them letting up on the distortion and allowing a tense groove to flourish, with sung vocals chiming in. It brings Dredg to mind. They drone on this groove as the vocals keep things moving while the band holds static. In the upper register, the vocals are pitchy, and the chorus does not soar as intended. This makes me think they might be the msot popular band at the bar in their zipcode but I am not sure it's going to allow them to stand shoulder to shoulder with my bands like Tool or Opeth Which that level of professionalism in your respective genre is what I am looking for here.

They continue down a more Tool-like vision of prog for 'Housholds of a Cosmic War". Which might be too ambitious for them. The hooky chorus and production are where they seem to be struggling the most. The tenor vocals employed here do not carry the kind of aggression that would sell me on this. "Song of Seven Pillars" confirms a distinct lack of conceptual continuity, resulting a band that throws different things at the wall to see what sticks; this more punk attempt is not it. "Devils Blessed by the Rising Sun" does not help their case in this regard, though it is better than the previous song.

"Last Rites for Lesser Magick" has a much better riff empowering it. Though the vocals come in and ruin it, along with the drummer speeding up. 'The Orb was Only Dist" is less amateurish and flows better; this is the direction they need to lean into. I'm going to go ahead and say the last song does not need to be 11 minutes long, even though at the time I am typing this sentence I am only a minute in. I'm basing this on all the choices they have made leading up to this point. They drag the first part out for four minutes nad then build it into a heavier riff. I was right; it becomes ponderous. I will give this album a 6.5; they just need to keep refining what they do in a manner that clicks best for them, but to impress me with one or two songs is better than hundreds of bands do.

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Ceremony : "Tell Me Your Dream"

 The two released after "Zoo" only received an 8.5 from here, as they veered off too far in a post-punk direction and lacked the punk side of that equation. Two songs into their new album, and it feels like they have returned to a more punk side of their past, which is a welcome return. They have never played it safe by being a by-the-books punk band, but punk is one genre that should throw whatever books are defining it out the window, making it more about the attitude. That said, they are done experimenting, as there is a funky groove and synths in "Madness" which still manges to retain its attitude and is a well-written song.I suppose it's done in a similar context as what Gang of Four used to do. 

There is more of a rough jangle to "Dark Summer". The vocals are more melodic, but feel true to who they are. "Deep Down Where I Belong" has a punk heart to it but the sound gathered to convey this has an earlier New York post-punk feel. It is the most experimental song thus far. They still manage to keep up their momentum. 'Antenna" benefits from a great bass tone. "Justify' feels like they are comfortably occupying the space that Fugazi used to occupy. It's a space that needs feeling, so I certainly don't mind

"Death Destruction Mayhem" works off renewed punk energy that complements the tension of the palm-muted guitar.'10 Planets" finds them back grooving in a clanging Fugazi-like place that carries the needed urgency. Oddly, they close the album with one of the most melodic moments as "Paradise" finds the vocals pulling most of the weight. For a riff to send a song hypnotically drifting is an oddity for punk bands who are not the Cure. Overall everythinig falls right into place this time around and they pick up where they left off with "Zoo" making this one of the years bet punk album's so far .Iwill give it a 10 This album drops August 7th on Relapse Records.

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Brocarde : "GOOD ATTENDANCE AT SUNDAY SCHOOL"

 

The first song leads you to believe this is going to be a concept album about her life, starting from birth in the opening track. This is a very theatrical presentation, and while it holds similar sonic elements to the gothier side of nu-metal, what she is doing is surprisingly original. She shrieks and squeaks, along with uttering a convincing, harsher scream. Perhaps if Raptuina were a black metal band that gave up their cellos for guitars, the result might be similar. "Feed My Soul" features Korn drummer Ray Luzier, who bangs on the kit in a manner true to who he is. This song follows closer to the nu-metal playbook.

While I get where she is going lyrically, the phrashing at times in "Last Supper" feels a little forced when it comes to the vocals smoothly blending with the riffs. With a title like "Haunted' you would think the song would feel more haunting, but instead it follows a variation of the formula that unravelled in the previous song, and we continue to encounter awkward vocal phrashing like she is trying to cram too many lyrics into the verses. "Pandora's Box' is color-by-numbers nu-metal. "Seven Sins" flows better than the bulk of the album despite the temper tantrum going into the chorus. It does show the potential that is here, and how she is capable of getting the vocals dialed in. 

The chorus to "FEMINIST" is ok, but the riffs are straight out of the late 90s radio rock slush pile. It is, however, better than the last song, 'Blank Pages, ' which sounds like it's out of a Disney musical. Sure, it builds up likea power ballad at the end, but the power chords are not a huge improvement. She does prove she can actually sing, but writing a song is hit or miss here, though the concept and vision are better than msot so I will give this a 7. 

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