Dark Nights- Death Metal Soundtrack

Here is a sound track to a comic book. I am reading the series now and it is the normal D/C style of writing that feels like a kid just threw a bunch of action figures on a a bed to make them fight. There is also not a single death metal band on this album, despite it's name. The first song is Mastodon who tackles a song about the demon Neron. It is more like older metal Mastodon and not like the more recent prog Mastodon. Troy sings this one so it's his standard baritone bellow. Chelsea Wolfe croons a ghostly ode to Wonder Woman, that has more electronic elements than I expected. The fact it stands up against her other work means this is not a throw away song , but something she put love into.

Tyler Bates is all over this album, he played with Marilyn Manson if you need a point of reference/ He teams Chino up with Health for a song about Darkseid,  and it is very loosely based. HEALTH handled most of the heavy lifting and Chino is just back up vocals for the most part.  Their vocals work well together.  The first missed shot is when Tyler couples Maria Brink with Anyd from Black Veil Brides, perhaps a better singer might made this work better, Maria does fine, but he continues to suck.  I first thought Grey Daze was a much improved Rise Against then I realized they were not ripping off Bad Religion. There is a slight hair metal tinge to Grey Daze sound that I like though the lyrics are stupid.  

Rise Against does what they normally do when their track follows and that is rip off Bad Religion.

Manchester Orchestra brings a little more balls than normal and does pretty well with the dramatic  alt rock of "Never Ending".  Denzel Curry tries to be Death Grips and the results are almost unlistenable .  Carach Angren plays it a little too safe when it comes to 'Skull with a Forked Tongue" while they do better than most of their peers would have it is not their best song and lacks what makes them unique, the production is also odd.  Starcrawler sounds less like Joan Jett here and more like Hole, though there was some of that on their album. Gunahips team up wit Dave Lombardo needs to be more of a permanent thing. It is one of this album's strongest songs. Greg from Dillenger Escape Plan is clearly just filling in for the cancelled Marilyn Manson on "Now You've Really Done it" as it's Manson's band backing him.  

Idela and Show Me the Body both sound like drunken New York cab drivers trying to cover Joy Division, despite the fact these are original songs that were written obviously while they are wasted, I much prefer the poppier sounds that Soccer Mommy conjures up  as their brand of dream pop is fairly polished. I am not really sure what the point of this album is thought their are the happy accidents here that make for great songs , I will give this an 8. 

Twin Shadow : "s/t"

I am ok with artists changing as long as it's for the better and enhances who they are, rather than loses their identity amid the stylistic shift . David Bowie is an example of an artist who did this effortlessly. I have been told it is not fair to hold everyone to the same standard as Bowie.  Bowie was a mortal man who made music, I think this is fair to all other mortals making music since one can do it then so should you. If we are under the premise that all people are created equal, this might not be the case if Bowie is superior some how which would mean other mortal could then be superior as well. This album takes several listens for the changes to sink it. The mood is a more upbeat. I prefer the groove of the second song even if it sounds a little bit too much like Lenny Kravitz. Which is weird considering he is dating Zoe. 

I would say I want the more new wave flavor found on "Eclipse" but I was fine with where he went from there on "Caer". It was darker and perhaps more drug induced. Things are just too happy for my personal tastes on " Johnny and Jonnie" . This mood is balanced on the lyrically less happy "Get Closer" which makes the Jackson 5 flavored chorus more digestible.  It is a very mixed bag as "Is There Any Love?" is back to being too celebratory. The new wave traces are drastically cut back, which might make this a more organic instrument focused album which I appreciate, but not the mood I seek out from music. I  can hear touches of 70s prog on this song which I support. 

It is not til "Gated Windows " that get what I want and a more Gary Numan like sound creeps in. 'Modern Man' is such a well written song the more r&b tone of the song works for me. There is a little bit of Prince in the songs DNA. He typically has worn his influences on his sleeve in best way possible the shift of influence is what sometimes alienates me. This is why the beach sound of "Lonestar" does not sit as well with me. I live on the beach now and I can say the music I hear every where is the only down side, apart from the moments I am in direct sunlight.  This more Bruno Mars like direction sometimes works , as the song "Brown Sugar" proves. It also proves that I am open to this directional change as long as elements of his older sound are still intact. 

He engages in this same brand of pop on the last song but does it better than it is heard previously in the album and more rock to it in order to win me over.  This is a great album for the summer , as the world returns to normal and they people who enjoy things like the beach during the day and drinking at the pool will want this album if they need pop music with more brains to it than what is typically on the radio . He will always beat out the likes of Maroon 5 and Bruno Mars when it comes to not loading you down with too many empty calories. I will give this album a 9, so it might not live up to what he did on "Eclipse' but i t is better than what the mainstream is being offered. 
 

Darkthrone : "Eternal Hails..."

I recently read a reviewed where bands like Possessed were called proto death metal, which this album could also be filed under as it owes more to hat than black metal at this point, thought the New Wave of British Heavy Metal can still be found in the dna . But I also hear the early roots of black metal such a Celtic Frost and Venom as we get deeper into the first song. My only qualm going into this is the production. I know they are into doing every thing themselves. Even then they have sounded better . There is more of a woozy doom rumble to "Hate Cloak" I do like the fact it is darker. Midway into it they lock in on a cool thrashy riff. I am not sure guitar solos are really there thing though. I am also unsure if it needs to be a nine minute song as it feels like they have said everything let to say at the five minute mark. 

There is more drive to "Wake the Awakened".  Fenriz stated he was unlearning playing the drums by only doing it when he was recording. I believe that as the drumming is cruder and more punk this time around. There is more of a black metal feel in some places, he does not use many blast beats , if at all. I like  this ride work on this song. Some of the guitar tones are really rough, but I think that is what they were going for. I am sure Darkthrone could have sold out and brought in any metal producer they wanted and have a full band, who in the Norweigan Black Metal scene would turn down the offer to play with them? Ok Varg aside. 

Sure there isqa cool riff midway into " Voyage to a Northpole Adrift". but it feels more like they are just jamming at the practice space and recorded it. I might have rehearsal tapes that have a better sound quality. The guitar solo in this one is however much improved thought that is not going to make the song, the fact the riff sounds like Mercyful Fate has more appeal to me, There is way more of a Celtic Frost thing going on with the last song. The thing is I have all the Celtic Frost albums so I would rather hear more of a Darkthrone album.  The riff at 1:45 is way too happy. They do make up for this with the creepy riff they jam out on at the end of the song that is almost more death rock like.  However due to the we are just going to jam around quality of this album I am rounding it down to an 8.5 , not sure if I have rated a Darkthrone album this low before, but even then it means 85 percent of the album is solid, maybe only one song I am not as into, but granted when therei sonly 5 songs they have to sount more.   

 

Death is June -Pestilence : "Exitivm"

Patrick Mameli is Pestilence at the this point as he is the only original member. This was also the case for "Hadeon" and that was a great album. I do not need to weight this album against 1989's "Consuming Impulse" I am perfectly fine with this album standing along side the more recent "Hadeon". There is less of a sci-fi vibe going on here and they are going more directly for the throat as the maze of twisting riffs comes for you in a full frontal attack. There isa angular dissonance to many of the guitar solos that I appreciate.  New bassist Joost Vander Graaf formerly of Dew Scented, debuts here. His playing is buried under the fast attack of the riffing. They take less twists and turns on the second song and focus on taunt riffing and more groove which plays to their favor. The vocals are more forward in the mix, almost like an Obituary album.

Another new edition to the band is guitarist Rutger Van Noordenburg. The rifs on this album are faster and more aggressive than those on "Hadeon". They are also not as catchy. The guitar solos are  more adventurous. There is a segment of the metal community who will be sold on that fact. I am not numbered among them. I am more interested in songs. Songs times this feels more like an athletic event. "Mortifervm" is the next piece that feels like a song to me. The key is  the syncopation they use to punch into certain parts. They continue in a direction that is more effective song writing with "Dominativ Submissa". The new drummer hammer most of this album with relentless double bass. He rips around his kit in a very Neil Peart manner. 

The album does find it's groove three songs in. There playing can never be called in question as execution is machine like in precision. This brings the question how much feeling do you need in your death metal? This is not to say they are intense and commanding as that is a vibe here. "Inficiat" has strong riffing and composition all the way around. The title track might have to grow on me, but it feels like the emphasis is on the gas pumped into the driving verse riff and is not as impressive as the previous song. The last song finds them not letting up on the  raging momentum. While this need for speed will appeal to some, I think, the more groove and song focus "Hadeon" made for better listening.  I will round this one down to an 8.5 , for this reason. It is still an impressive piece of work.  

Death is June - Crypt Crawler - " Future Usurper"

 

Right from the bass intro they have my ear because they are not opening this going for the throat. It is not to say they are not capable of doing that they just bring more to the table. I suppose this would fall under progressive death metal, though they are not too mathy or wanky.   Midway into the opener the show they can pick up speed with a very thrashy riff. In the first song alone they prove themselves capable ot hitting all the marks you might want from a death metal band. The vocals remind me a little of Death in their harsh scowl. The songs are memorable and catchy. The guitar work is great. I am almost sold on the first song, though the question is can they prove to deliver like this all the time or is this a bar they are setting too high for themselves that the rest of the album will not live up to?   

They are a tightly coiled aggression machine with all the hooks that old school thrash used to dish out, but run from a filter of classic death metal . They keep this big epic maximum head banging momentum going into "Force fed to the Dead". Death metal about zombies works for me.  'Delirium" introduces more melodic elements from the guitar. There is a doomier tone, though this is not navigated as smoothly, in some of the more angular turns, though on second listen it was not as noticeable, though the death metal parts, sound more like everyone else/. I like the darker tone going into "Inherent Complexion". They end up taking off with rapid violence from there and steam roll you.  'Choir of Reprieve" is the first where it feels like they just kind of fall into the speed trap of most death metal bands and have a more monochrome  This is given more of a contrast by the wider range of dynamic sonic colors in 'the Avaricious Ones".  It still succeeds at being heavy though the riff has more of a moshy swing to it.

The riff to "Horrors of Humanity" is catchy enough , but it at first felt like a continuation of the previous song. The lyrics are easy to discern with the articulated rasp of his growl. The guitar solo is very Kirk Hammett. The deliberate riffing of " The Illusion We're Under" shifts into more progressive passages are more fluid than some of the album's others turns towards this. "Once Shadow Now Flesh" is not the album's most adventurous song, but it is catchy and works well.  I will give this album a 9.5, making it one of the best death metal releases so far this year. If you like melodic death metal with progressive touches, then this is a must. This Austrian band has a future for sure.

 

Death is June - The Top 20 Slayer Songs pt 2 -10 to 1

This is the second installment of the Top 20 Slayer songs. I said pretty much every thing that need to be said to lead into this right here... I have noticed the top 10 have shifted some as I listened to them while I was putting this together , moments of "oh Wait this song really is better than I thought", I have been listening to a ton of Slayer the past couple weeks so I have heard these songs several times on top pf the 35 years I have been listening to Slayer. so here ya go 

 10-"Spill the blood " 

 From- South of Heaven 

 This might be one of their mellowest songs, but it is on here for a reason, this is not only one of Tom's best showings in the studio, but some of Dave's best drumming as well.

   

 9- "Gemini " 

From- Undisputed Attitude 

  Another serial killer love song, this might be their most under rated as it is buried among the punk

 covers .

   

  8-"Temptation" 

From- "Seasons in the Abyss" 

 

  One thing that has always given Slayer the advantage over many of their heavier minded peers , is the lyrics are better and vocals have more purpose, the way the vocals have a call and response feel to them make this songs and empower the crushing riffs 

 

 7- "Behind the crooked cross" 

From - South of Heaven" 

  Not only were they one of the heaviest bands going when this came out but they proved you can still have catchy songs at the same time.

 

 6- "Disciple " 

From - God Hates Us All" 

As you can see there is not a ton of stuff from the post "Seasons " years , but this is one of the best the chorus obviously rules .

 

 5-"Angel of death"  

  Frim - Reign in Blood

 The scream, the double bass and the riff , yes all are killer, but while it might be their most well known song that doesn't mean it is the best

   

 4- "Mandatory suicide"  

  From - "South of Heaven" 

 Of course the top 4 have to also be the four darkest songs . This also happens to have groove.

   

 3- " Dead skin mask" 

From - Seasons in the Abyss  

  The best of the serial killer love songs. If it was the top 20 darkest Slayer songs this would be number one

 

 2 - "South of heaven"  

From -South of Heaven

  Truth be told the reason this one got beat out was because, the number one song is the first song that got me hooked on Slayer

   

 1- "Die by the sword"

From - "Show No Mercy"

 I was 12 and would listen to a metal show that came on the radio and record onto blank tapes making mix tapes. This song was on one of those and I would rewind it and listen to it over and over again. I think it serves as the perfect calling card for this band and aged the best of all the songs from that album

.

Death is June : Witch Vomit- "Abhorrent Rapture"

 From the first song I am going to say this might be the most brutal death metal band I am covering this month. Though the do smooth things out into a more digestible chug in places. The production is rough and dense on purpose. Speed is generally this band's thing. The vocals are a growled gurgle from the sewer. It makes me think of a less groove oriented Disma. They hit you hard and fast where Disma focused more on songs. Much like most extreme metal bands , the heaviness that hit you with on the first song is so impressive that you are stunned. It is not until the second song that you regain your sense enough to ask a more important question, but can they write a fucking song ?  

 They prove more effective at what they do when the slow down for the grinding groan of "Funeral Purgation" this is where you begin to hear the Incantation influence. I am fine for the blasting fast parts when they so down to groove a riff after.  "Necrometamorphosis" is a blur of blinding fast riffs and becomes back ground noise. When you bring a blur of sound like that it just becomes white noise. Two minutes in they put more emphasis on the riff and a little more gallop, but revert back to speed, so it washes out.  this goes back to the initial question I asked , but can you write a fucking song. On the second song they prove they can, but this goes to show you that relying on heavy alone only goes so far. 

They pull it together on "Abhorrent Rapture' to close out the album,. Here are many of the elements I want from death metal. It is dark and misery balances out the aggression. They do kick in the jams and come at you full force and I do not have a problem with death metal doing that but I will say it a hundred times I need dynamics. If you do not have that you have the white noise all the blasting fades into.  I will round this down to an 8. It was better than I thought it would be when they hit me with that inital blast of  nasty. This is solid brutality with lots of potential if they learn restraint , I think the fact this is an ep plays to their favor. Being released on 20 Buck Spin. u 

 

Death is June - Fear Factory - "Aggression Continuum"

 

These guys used to be a death metal band when they first started and aside from their more industrial groove leanings they typically still are, Burton C Bell's clean singing plays a larger role at times which is really the only thing that keep from sealing the deal. Thought these guys popularized death metal using clean vocals  at times as a good cop/ bad cop dynamic. Ggoing into this I assumed it was going to suck and I really have not paid a tone of attention to what has been going on with this band in the past decade. I do know that Burton left after this album was finished, so there was drama in the studio I am sure.  While they do stick to the same formula they have been using for years. the first track is pretty impressive and feels that they actually gave a shit about that song. 

From there the groove metal tinged black black follows the blue print and is pretty heavy. At time a riff or two will remind me of nu metal in the more Slipknot sense of the genre. The title track works , but doesn't feel as inspired as the first song. Once you are mid way into most of these songs there are little surprises you pretty much know what you are going to get. The synths are really present in the mix. I dod like when Burton strays from the barking and gives the vocals more purpose on "Purity". The guitars are a little on the stiff side. "Fuel Injected Suicide Machine"  is pretty dialed in to meet expectations. "Collapse" is pretty stompy, like it came from when death metal tried to co exist with nu metal in the late 90s . It works for what it is . "Manufactured Hope' is another formulaic clock punching, but they are still good at what they are doing. 

In some ways this album is heavier than their more recent work, in other's it is not because of how high the synths are in the mix. There is some riffing that is just as taunt as anything they have done on "Cognitive Dissonance" . The chorus is a little bright , but I can hear how it would grow on me. One of the album's best songs is "Monolith" everything just comes together in the right way for them.  They know how do dial in all the tones in such a way that it sounds like their classic stuff at all times, aside from the mixing issue with the synths. The key for them is can they put it all together as needed 100 percent of the time?  I am giving this album an 8.5 , which means they put it together spot on 85 percent of the time , which means 3 of the songs did not do much for me, if you are a fan that number works for you I am sure as it is better than no album and serves as a decent parting place for Bell. 

Death is June - The Top 20 Slayer songs

Slayer is not death metal. I know this . They are however the band which influenced the genre the most. Darker , heavier and faster than their thrash peers, they opened the door for bands like Morbid Angel to bring the evil. They used to be one of my favorite bands, but as a teenager when they came out and said the whole devil worship thing was a gimmick, I was pretty set with them being poseurs. By the time "Divine Intervention" came out I had mended this fence, then over the years the quality of their work declined and began to sound like dialed in punk with metal guitar tones and production, lacking the darkness and depth of their earlier work.

 Now I am digging back into them and taking what I like and leaving the rest. So here are their top 20 songs. These are not in order pf popularity as I do not give a shit what the rest of the world wants to hear these are the songs that make them stand out from the rest which is why they are my favorites and since this is my blog where my word is law then if I say these are the top 20 Slayers songs then that is what they are. Thank you to being one of my 380,000 readers who give my word more weight , because if you are one of my readers then how can I be wrong ? 

20-"Desire" 

from - "Diabolus Musica"

 One of  the non- nu-metal songs on this album, it 's creeper than the rest and in fair warning the more serial killer love song tone their songs have the more I love it.

   

  19-"Criminally insane" 

 From - Reign in blood 

Serial killers are obviously a popular topic for them, this one is more in your face , but very memorable

   

18-Hell awaits from - Hell Awaits

 The title track from an album that is a major influence on death metal in terms of the sheer speed and aggression they attack the songs with , this one being on of the album's best

   

 17- "Post mortem "

 From Reign in Blood 

 Having some of metal's most memorable riffs, on an album where they hit you at full throttle they show they are capable of being more deliberate and making the riffs stick in your head for years to come

   

 16-"Necrophiliac"

 from- Hell Awaits 

 The best song off the Hell Awaits, album and as a kid hearing about fucking a sinful corpse was next level shit. Another example of how they write riffs like no one else

   

15-"213"  

From - "Divine  intervention"  

 here is another serial killer love song, without question the best song off this album and it is about Jeffery Dahmer, winning all round, Slayer really uses these dynamics well

   

 14-"Blood red"

 From- "Season in the Abyss" 

 Angry war songs is another Slayer staple. they began to stray from overt satanic imagery on South of Heaven, war and romancing the horror of it had always been a theme but it began to take center stage thanks to Jeff, the groove on this one finds Slayer at the peak of their songwriting , there were never as consistent after this album

   

  13-"Aggressive Perfector 

From- Haunting the chapel" 

 Listening to this years later I might prefer the Live Undead version over this Haunting the Chapel one , but since it is the album it first appeared on I will include it here

   

  12- "Altar of Sacrifice"

 From- Reign in Blood

Learn the sacred words of praise hail Satan 

 

 11-"Raining Blood"

 from - Reign in Blood 

 The title track to their most popular album should be number one in the mind of their dumbest fans , who are easily appeased by a those riffs, but as a whole song vs other whole songs with more dynamics the next 10 songs beat this one out

 

Death is June - Blindfolded and Led to the Woods : " Nightmare Withdrawals"

The band from New Zealand succeeds in not sounding like any other death metal band I have covered this month which is an accomplishment. Some of this is thanks to the helter skelter angular riffs they throw at you from every direction. It is progressive but in more of a math rock way than wanky shredding. "Black Air" is not as impressive as they throw a lot of speed at you and the drumming gets more blasty. The third song "And You Will try to Speak' makes up for this by having an arrangement with more dynamics and venturing into a jammy post rock section. "The Whites of the Eyes" is more focused on brutality, but there is some groove to the under a minute and a half they hit you with. 

 They bring thicker groove with djent tendencies on The Wings of a Magpie" which features Karl Sanders of Nile. There is nothing that distinguishes his playing from everything else that goes on here, I think I can pin point in the chaos what he is doing. "Lucid Visitations" continues to find the band flex their dynamic range and it is the moments of introspective gloom that make the brutal beatings more justified and come off as heavier explosions. Even these parts have merit as the riffs shift like restless waters . The title track is pretty much just in your face aggression though they have some nuance even there. 

There is a little more of a dynamic contrast while keeping the focus on their mind bending heaviness with "the Obscured Witness" . They show another one of their strengths are the groove they sometimes lock into on a song like " Rorschach and delirium" . The riffs circle each other like slithering snakes on meth. They can also pull out catchy riffs when they want to. Some of the clean guitar work is touched with jazz and wonderful.  The last song opens with impressive drumming from a genre which that sort of thing is a standard that this guy goes above and beyond on. The vocals are almost more hard core in their cadence when they come in.  It is consistent with what they do and well done though not the best song of the album. I will  give this album a 9, what makes it even more impressive is how they manage to stay so heavy while defying the limitations of the genre.   

Amenra - "De Doom"

Right from the first song it is obvious they have continue to grow musically. The added the girl from Oathbreaker to lend her voice and it creates a more Swans like atmosphere. At most is a big word for this album as it is loaded down with it, the indulge themselves in ambiance and take their time getting to the meet of the matter. When they are in the song it is cool as hell but it takes a minute to get there. They were killer live when I saw them touring to support their last album to the point that they blew Voivod and Yob off the stage. I am not sure how this would translate as it would make for a great deal of dead air when they are doing these spoken word pieces. In fact the second song is just an ambient interlude but almost 5 minutes of one. 

It is a good thing they waste no time and come in crushing it on the song that follows, as I was at the atmospheric threshold of what would have worked for me. You know I love for things to be sonically heavy more than heavy metal, so the fact the bass is more burly and allows the guitars to play dissonant melodies works for me. Colin's clean vocals have really improved as he project more and is not singing in the fragile Sigur Rios like voice. They find a balance of atmosphere and song writing on "Het Gloren". It is a sprawling 11 minute song and maybe a minute of that fat could have been trimmed off. They lurch into a downtrodden take on sludge that I can get behind, even though it drones. 

This use of restraint is forgotten as they go back to somewhat ponderous ambiance setting the stage for spoken word. It does build out of this eventually , but it is a great deal of time wasted when metal is much better served when it gets to the point. I am not sure that we need six and half minutes of a 12 minute song , with poetry being read. I think we could have accomplished this in seven minutes and made for a better listen.  I will give this one an 8.5 as it is pretty stunning when they do lock in on the more moving heavy sonics, it is just inconsistent in that regard and seems like it would not be as powerful experience live

Ryan Adams : "Big Colors"

 

Before I began reviewing this album I was a few songs into the new Crowded House, and now I feel like this album is more in touch with the 80s than Crowded House. A great deal of this is due to the production. The softer touch to the vocals also add to that sound. By the second song it feels a little more like Adams, then drifts back into the smoother 80s pop for "It is so quiet it is loud" .  "Fuck the Rain" is not some of his hookiest song writing and just kind of drifts along. It also begins to make me think of the War on Drus of Neil Young at times. "Manchester" has one of the strongest choruses , it even reins him back in to sing in a manner that comes closes to what he is known for. There are some really strong guitar tones on this album though. 

It is hard to say this album is experimental considering the ground Ryan has already covered though out his career. This does seem to be a focused step away from certain signatures, to the point that when he goes back closer to something you might expect on " What am I" he sounds unsure what he is supposed to do vocally .  There is a more rock a billy feel to the driving "Power".  He does a better job with this more rock sound on " I Surrender" his voice falls right where it wants to be. The strum of the guitar on "Showtime" guides his voice back to what he does best .  "In it for the Pleasure" is almost a ballad , but the strum of the guitar gives it a little more movement. 

'Middle of the line " finds him rocking out , but with more of a strummed indie rock folk sense to it. He is go at this I would be interested in hearing more of this kind of thing from him. "Summer Rain' is a return back to the more 80s like sound we heard going into the album, but it comes together even better here.  Not his best album but there are solid songs and it is better than what most can do so I will give this one an 9.  

Wolf Alice : "Blue Weekend"

 

Formed as an acoustic duo it has evolved into an atmospheric pop band. The dream like qualities are balanced out with grooves on songs like "Delicious Things" .  The vocals are layered into choirs on the choruses. It can be a fairly large sound. The guitars are heavily effected so they are closer to things like dream pop and post-rock in the sweeping manner dynamics are used in their songs. The more folk strum of guitar emerges on "Lipstick on the Glass' where she floats into her upper register rather smoothly.  I would not put her along the likes of Taylor Swift or Chvrches in terms of knocking hooks out of the park. While I like this I think my wife is going to be a bigger fan .

The bass line to "Smile" works a great deal better for me. Her vocals shift into almost more of a rap. The first song that actually rocks like rock music should.  "Safe From Heartbreak: doesn't really do as much for me, while still more of a ballad "How Can I Make it OK" reminds me of KD Lang with it's subtle country undertones. "Feeling Myself" taps closer to who they are as a band,  "Last Man on Earth" is pretty fragile as it is almost too centered on atmosphere until it builds midway into the song. There is a  very Beatles like vibe to it. 

"No Hard Feelings" is another more fragile almost Aimee Mann like vocal. The second Beach song is stronger and has more to grab you sonically. This was a very easy listen and I can see myself getting more out of this album despite  the breezy nature of some songs making it less tangible, so I will give this a 9 for now and see how it grows on me. 

Death is June - The Top 10 Metal Albums of 2021 ...so far

Yes it is that time again, since there is plenty of cross over into death metal with many of these bands and some outright death metal bands I decided to include it as part of Death is June , after all lets face it this imy blog so I can do whatever I want to. Still waiting around for some of the bigger names in metal like King Diamond , to drop albums, so things can still change in the next 5 months , no one really puts out anything in December, I think I have heard everything coming up between now and August at this point , just starting to have September albums show up in my in-box. There are less death doom albums coming out and not seeing any really prevailing trends when it comes to metal. You would have thought all the death and dystopia from 2020 would have carried over into the music coming out now, but would say the influence of that on these albums is marginal at best , so any ways here are the top ten metal albums of 2021 so far.  

      

10-Plagueweilder  - "Covenant of Death" 

Black Metal 

These guys have expanded their sonic range and now find themselves in a place no unlike Tombs. This is a good thing as this is the most mature and polished song writing I have heard from them yet. It is both more melodic and darker,

Abysmal Hymns: Plaguewielder : " Covenant Death"

9-Withered - "Verloren" 

Death metal / sludge 

As this Atlanta band grew from wanting to be a black metal band into a death metal band they have improved with each album. 'Grief Relic' being my favorite to date.  This album finds the death metal mutating into something more sonic and sludge like. 

Abysmal Hymns: Death is June -Withered : "Verloren"

  8-Hundred Headless Horsemen - "Apokalepsia" 

Progressive Death Metal 

Of all the Finnish death metal bands coming out this year, and there are a lot of them , these guys are the most original, they also only use death metal as one color in their dynamic range , making them the least death metal of the Finnish Death Metal army, but one of the best. 

Abysmal Hymns: Death is June -Hundred Headless Horsemen : "Apokalepsia"

7-Wristmeetrazor- "Replica of a Strange Love" 

Metal core 

Metal core is not normally my thing, but these kids make it dark enough for it to work for me. The vocal trade off might reek of Myspace but over all the songs deliver. 

Abysmal Hymns: Wristmeetrazor : " Replica of a Strange Love"

 6-the Flight of Sleipnir- "Eventide" 

Black Metal

 A black metal album that remembers it is rooted in the metal of old and brings a healthy dose of melody with it.

Abysmal Hymns: THE FLIGHT OF SLEIPNIR : " Eventide"

 

 

5-Bridge Burner- "Disempath"

Death Metal 

 This New Zealand death metal band is influenced by hardcore enough to provide some really punishing break down grooves while still giving a shit about songs

 

Abysmal Hymns: Bridge Burner : "Disempath"

 4- Noctambulist- "Elegieen" 

 Atmospheric Black Metal

 Yes, there is some killer black metal coming out of the Netherlands and it sounds like this. They are not jumping on Deafheaven's band wagon but in a similar sonic zip code.

Abysmal Hymns: Black Metal History Month -Noctambulist -"Eiegieen"

 

 

3-Bloody Hammers - "Songs of Unspeakable Terror " 

Horror Punk meets Metal 

The current state of Danzig's voice is sad, this scratches that itch while still being original enough and full of infectious songs . 

Abysmal Hymns: Bloody Hammers : "Songs of Unspeakable Terror"

 

 

 

 

2-Angkor Wat - "Worst Enemy" 

Thrash 

The most under rated thrash band comes back to show they still have it . Full of older but wiser songwriting, yet they never lost the youthful rage. 

Abysmal Hymns: Angkor Wat : "Worst Enemy"

1- Portrayal of Guilt - " We Are Always Alone" 

Grind -core / power violence / screamo / Metal core

This album is many things all of them are dark, ugly and disturbing in the best ways possible. The broadened their songwriting and only 3 of the albums 9 songs are under the two minute mark, This gives them time to expand the range of sounds the hit you with and work some hooks into your ears and under your flesh  

Abysmal Hymns: Portrayal of Guilt : "We Are Always Alone"

 

Death is June- Crypta : " Echoes of the Soul"

 

The bassist and drummer from Nervosa, broke off to form this band. Most of the members are from Brazil except for their token blond from the Netherlands on guitar. More death metal than Nervosa  The opener is a full speed ahead fest. The vocals more black metal due to the higher snarl, when they go a little lower they are like the demon voice King Diamond uses on "Them". 'Possessed' has more melody thanks to the catchier guitars. The drumming also stands out as being more noteworthy on this song. "Death Arcana" is like a more thrashing version of Morbid Angel. She goes down a little lower on this one for extended growls. So she is capable of doing them. They also offer some expansive riffs that break away from being locked into to hyper speeds. 

There are more lower growls on "Shadow Within". Yes they can play fast, but this is not the album's catchiest song writing and begins to sound a little like everything else. I have to go back and listen to " Under the Black Wings' three times to form an opinion of it. The more deliberate riff works better than the previous song, but it is a little too straight forward. The pace picks up for the more blackened "Kali". It grows on me , but is not the strongest song on the album. They continue to prove themselves more effective when at a more mid paced chug with songs like " Blood Stained Heritage"  

They lock back into the hookier thrash chug on "Dark Night of the Soul" though it is pretty close to what they did on the previous song .  The last song is not as impressive and plays off of the color by number metal hand book for genre typical riffing.  What they have recorded is well done if not original. It grew on me enough to give this album an 8

Death is June - Looking Back in Anger at Slugdge 's "Gastronomicon"

Here is another example of how you can have it both ways, you can be brutally heavy, yet still care about songs and have a sound that is your own. Do I hear influences in what they do but overall they have their own sound. First off though are we going to talk about the fact they are called sludge with an extra g , but are death metal ? Sludge often uses low growled vocals but this makes a clear line in the sand that these are death emtal vocals , not to mention all the blinding fast riffage they throw at you. The clean vocals that come in are almost power metal, the opposite of sludge's crusty  punk roots. I do like the adventurous progressive spirit they attack their songs with instead, so not complaining about this .  "Lettuce Prey" has some amazingly catchy riffs . 

It surprises me that a bigger deal was not made of this album back when it came out as these riffs are fucking relentless even when they get more prog on "the Sound of Mucous' . They lock down harder on grooves with "Slimewave Zero" .  "Invertahate' relies on speed so much it almost seems more like black metal thanks to the buzz of the guitar.  "Salters of Madness" leans into the more brutal speedy side of what they do , kinda of picking up where the previous song left off and begins to sound a little more like every one else. 

They use clean vocals to break up the more blasty mc nasty parts of " Pax Araena" which is not playing to their strongest of strengths but is an improvement rather than allowing themselves to sink into a mushy mire of heaviness that all sounds the same, making the front end of this album stronger than the rest of it , but still more solid than most.  So much so that I will round this one up to a 9.5 

Death is June - Hnagash : "Ritual Over the Grave"

 

At times this band from Chile is more death doom, as others like " Black Arts" there is more of a classic metal gallop to the riff. They are rooted in dirty dark death metal. The first had me impressed because the over all mood and heaviness. This is a problem often faced by very heavy bands in that the first song crushes your head with the weight of what they are doing it is not until mid way into the second song that you think to ask, can these guys actually write a song ? This is the second time I have listened to this album and I am still no sure it. I am not getting Chilean vibes from their sound, though they sound more American than European. I know in 2021 it is not politically correct to say not all places in this world are conducive to making metal. You do not have to be a student of the occult to understand the concept that every where has a different energy .  That energy influences creative energy. It extends it's energy back generations and that too bears weight. 

There are still some effective elements in place. The bass tone being one of them which plays into a denser sound. The sound is something they have going for them, but it brings into light the sound vs song struggle. There are creepy riffs? Yes, but they can not keep things from feeling somewhat dynamically flat at times. There is an honest anguish in their sound, but something is off. See the previous paragraph on energy to get this. The guitar players might be the most skilled musical element as the heavy hand drummer just beat the drums into submission and takes little risks.  I suppose they are trying to dig into more of a doom thing but on "Eternal Wandering " it sounds like they are becoming bored with their own riff. This song has the most obnoxious guitar solo I have heard in some time.  Lots goes wrong on this one. I  could not make it all the way through when I made my second pass through  this album. 

   The last song is an ambient outro that is almost seven minutes long. In most cases I would say it is a waste of time, but I think I was ready for a break this time through. I will round this album down to a 7.5. You might be into the sound of this kind of death metal and perhaps that is all you need when it comes to this kind of music. Otherwise, this is not a strong case for metal being able to come out of Chile .  If you want mena ugly death metal and need little else you might like this one more than I did. 

Buckcherry : "Hellbound"

There is one other member who was in the band for "Crazy Bitch" which leaves Josh Todd as the only one who love the cocaine. His voice pretty much is Buckcherry. The first song is more explosive in a sleazy punk way. There is a great deal of swagger throughout the record. The bar Todd has set for himself weighs these songs against the infectious writing style that crossed this band over into more commercial radio territory. The title track is the first song that lives up to this. It does have a very AC/DC like strut to it. There is a more Aerosmith feel to "Gun". It works for what it is, I prefer the previous song. 

The "Dyer Maker" like groove to "No More Lies" breaks away from the in-your-face cock rock and is one of the album's best songs. "Here I Come" is a straight up rocker but doesn't not play to the groove which is their strength which they high light on " Junk" on follows. It has a better hook and moves, you as a listener.  Josh Todd's voice has held up, but it where he puts it rather than the notes he hits as he is not an Axl Rose when it comes to throwing his voice around. There is more of a 70s shamble to "Wasting No More Time'. The riff makes me think of Alice Cooper's "Eighteen" if Tom Petty covered it. 

"the Way" is a power ballad of  sorts though rooted almost more in country . Not the best song of this sort they have written , but for what it is , I would say this is better than any of their peers doing similar. There is some interesting drumming on " Barricade", but it is Todd's vocals that really sell it.  This album might not be their best, but considering it is 2021, it is head and shoulders over anyone trying to do similar. If anyone is even attempting this kind of rock . I will give this a 9 , as it is really strong and one of the best straight up rock albums I have heard so far this year.  

 

Death is June - Morbid Angel's COVENANT VS DOMINATION

 Two of the legendary death metal kings best albums go head to head . I make them duke it out in a track back track comparison. Covenant is one of Morbid Angel's biggest albums . Domination is not to shabby but as we gear up for the top 20 Death Metal Albums of the 90s only one can make the cut. Which one is the best.. lets find out.

"Rapture" vs "Dominate"  

'Rapture"  is hard to beat it has catchy riffs, yet is fast and aggressive as you want death metal to . "Dominate" is a strong song, the only weakness it has that really gives "Rapture" the edge is vocals are to articulated to the point of being spoken, and do not have enough growl to them

Winner- "Rapture" 

Covenant - 1 

Domination -0 

  'Pain Divine" vs " Where the Slime Live" 

What gave "Rapture" the edge in the feral rawness of energy, plays against it when pitted against a darker more groove laden riff . 

Winner - "Where the Slime Live" 

Covenant -1 

Domination- 1 

"World of Shit"  vs " Eyes to See , Ears to Hear" 

"World of Shit" is a great song, but the chorus to "Eyes to See..." is too hooky and just better song writing that wins out over brutality 

Covenant- 1 

Domination- 2 

  "Vengeance is Mine" vs " Nothing But Fear" 

"Vengeance" comes the closest to sounding like it could have been on "Blessed are the Sick" there feels like it has more passion for it's evil than " Nothing But Fear" 

Winner- "Vengeance is Mine" 

Covenant- 2 

Domination- 2 

"Lions Den" vs "Dawn of the Angry" 

This is where things are going to get tough. |"Dawn of the Angry" is driven by great drumming and juggernaut riffing, but "Lions Den" are these guys at their top of their songwriting . 

Winner - "Lions Den' 

Covenant- 3 

Domination 2 

"Blood on My Hands" vs " This Means War" 

The first thing that strikes me about "Blood On My Hands' is despite the fact it is blazing fast the vocals have a purpose. "This Means War' is even faster, but not as purposeful in terms of songwriting. 

Winner- "Blood on My Hands" 

Covenant- 4 

Domination- 2 

"Angel of Disease" vs " Cesare's Palace' 

There was no need to even press play on this one as "Angel of Disease" is one of their beast songs ever 

Winner - "Angel of Disease" 

Covenant- 5

Domination 2 

"Sworn to the Black" vs "Inquisition"    

This one was a surprise as I never really gave much a listen to "Inquisition" but it is hookier and better written than "Sworn to the Black    

Winner- "Inquisition" 

Covenant- 5

Domination- 3 

"God of Emptiness"  vs "Hatework" 

I mean is this even fair?  I had to go back to listen to "Hatework" as I forgot it is a melodramatic and almost an instrumental. No contest

Winner -God of Emptiness  

Final score- Covenant wins 6 to 3, not even close.       

Death is June- Grand Cadaver : "Madness Comes"

Here are a bunch of guys from other Swedish death metal bands, who decided to form another Swedish death metal band. One thing they all have in come sounds like a deep devotion to Entombed. They are just better at sounding like Entombed than all the American bands who try. They are also better than all the younger Swedish kids trying to sound like Entombed as well, because these guys are pros at it. Funny enough their previous bands Dark Tranquility, Katatonia, and Expulsion did not sound like Entombed. This desire to perhaps be in Entombed , might have been a life time goal derided by the other members of those bands so they formed this band with a common goal in mind. 

 Midway into the second song "Staff of the Oppressor " the gas begins to run out of the inspiration tank. It all begins to sound less like cool riffs influenced by Entombed and just grab bag Swedish death metal. Things do not make any drastic changes for the better on "Blood Filled Skies| aside from the fact the chorus to this song is a little more memorable. They wait til the last song to pour on the generic angry death metal speed. The riff is much more Entombed, on the previous song I had begun to suspect perhaps they also listened to Carcass, but not so much on the last song.  

The guitar tones are totally dialed in to sound like Entombed. If they deny this I hope some one spits in their face. I mean they are really good at sounding like Entombed so that alone is worth some thing, so even with me rounding this down to a 7.5 , I think I am being more than fair. I already own the Entombed albums so there is zero reason for me to ever listen to this again. You might be a dull prson who misses Entombed and tries to fool themselves into thinking they also like other bands so they listen to a band like this to prove to themselves. 

3.3

Death is June - Seeping - "the Watcher"

I have made it a point this month to stray from death doom. Sure the trend is diminishing , and maybe some of the bands that fall more on the doom side of things I will touch on in November for Doom month. These guys I feel pretty solid about covering since they fall more on the death metal side. They just happen to play melodically and with great deliberation. The mourning quality of their sound does not overtake the aggression. Their songwriting is very compact. They do not sprawl out past the five minute mark . In the case of "Morbid Growth" which is only 14 seconds over the two minute mark they could stand to write these a little longer. 

The guitar sound is much dirtier than death doom. This rough around the edges approach helps place them closer toward death metal despite the slow clean guitar strum that follows on " Grave Intrusion". It is a nice touch mood wise even if it is more doom when they do it. I am fine with doom , I like it as a genre more than death metal, when it is done right and not just a bunch of Black Sabbath worship.  Death metal is often guilty of worshipping at it's own altars of madness. This album does neither.  

The thud of bass heralds in the title track that closes this EP out . This might be the album's heaviest song. Which considering 3 of the hour songs are gut wrenchingly heavy , says a great deal. The vocals perhaps serves the least purpose on this one, though it might be the fact they are fairly one dimensional in their guttural agony, and I just noticed 4 songs in. Not a deal breaker , as they are great at what they are doing.  So great that I am going to give this album a 9, I have really enjoyed the time I have spent with it , though it is unlikely it is going to make it into regular rotation for me. Yet it should be rated accordingly to what it does do right , which is most things, though I  could stand to hear what this might be like as a full length.    

2.8 

Death is June - Killing Addiction- "Mind of a New God"

After clicking on the first song I knew this band was not going to be the brand of death metal I was looking. Unlike many young people of today I am capable of gritting my teeth and listening to something that might not fall along the lines of what I want for my paradigm of the world today. I can even finds some elements that are worthwhile of redemption. The school of brutal as fuck death metal this comes from descended from Cannibal Corpse, whose earlier work I like then once Chris Barnes left has been hit or miss for me. Once I am three songs in the very straight forward one dimensional approach to death metal this band employs gets old fast for me. I have reviewed many death metal albums I like this month. They were from bands who sometimes had to be ok with sheer heaviness alone being compromised for the sake of songwriting. I think heaviness alone is the formula this band applies to songwriting. 

Some riffs are hookier than others. The low gurgled growl of the vocals , is a one trick pony though on "Prophecy Armageddon" they contribute a little more to the song. It is not surprising that this band is from Florida, though not Tampa. Yes you can mindlessly bang your head to " Destroyer of Worlds" , but it sounds like every faceless death metal band that stuck to closely to the formula they did not create their own identity. Yes, I can hear Morbid Angel influence in this, but the thing is I already own all the Morbid Angel albums so why no just listen to them?  When they bring the speed infused chaos , I am even less impressed. They do slow the riffs down , but they are so generic in the first place I am bored. Now if you were to ask me is this band good at playing generic death metal, then I would say yes. 

I begin to lose where I am at in the album until some of the more deliberate riffing of "Condemned to Nothingness" catches my ear. The vocals use different phrasing as well in a few places . The muck of stock death metal riffs and little dynamics continues the deeper we go into the album. I will give this album a 6.5 , it is not my thing when it comes to death metal in 2021, since  I got more than my fair share of this sort of thing back in 1991.  

 

Flotsam & Jetsam : "Blood in the Water"

 

Most metal bands say our next album is going to be our heaviest . What else can they say? We are really looking at selling out and just playing rock music this time around. fucking do It without saying a word. I did not even know this album was coming out. The first song fucking rips.  The production is really dialed in giving them a much bigger sound.  Ken Mary who played on Alice Cooper's album "Raise Your Fist and Yell" plays on this one. Making it is second outing with the band. The second song finds Eric's vocals which stay in a gritty chest register the bulk of the album yet still commanding an epic enough croon to create more of a power metal feel . They happens to a lesser extent on " A Place to Die" , which proves to be a better song thanks to catchier melodies.

They make the most of catchy melodies thanks to Eric's voice on "the Walls".  Guitarist Michael Gilbert is the only other original member , which proves to be enough to come close to capturing their classic sound , though the bulk of this falls on Eric's voice.  "Cry For the Dead" opens with a more power ballad like tone, recalling their earlier work. Eric almost gets back up to where he used to though the falsetto metal yodels are at this juncture not present . They are not relying on their thrash chops from yesteryear to do all the work and perhaps the fresh blood in the band keeps on foot in the present . The attack of "the Wicked Hour" is not rooted in their old 80s sound. At times this brings more thunder to the thrash gallop they kick up "Too Many Lives" is an example of this. Eric gets up their without being in falsetto on the verses here. 

"Gray Dragon" is the only that relies too much on the standard heavy metal tropes. While some of these are in play for "Reagression " benefits from some of the album's best song writing. " Undone" would be the closest thing this album has to a radio song. "Seven Seconds Til the End of the World" is somewhat typical power thrash, but it is written so well that it works because let's face it these guys were the masters of that. I will give this album a 9.5 , as it is amazing these guys are making some of their best music this late into their careers . 

Death is June - Severed Boy : "Tragic Encounters"

 

This duo summons  a very dense sound for just the two of them. The come of a dark and dirty corner of the sonic world where sludge and death metal collide. There are moments of hurtling speed placed between very deliberate walls of lumbering fuzz. They are not about making noise as spaces are left for you to catch your breath.  Unlike many sludge oriented bands thanks to their death metal intentions they do not drag things on into sprawling drones and keep their songs under the five minute mark. Vocally the coarsens applied  is more of a tortured howl of anger than a growl so file that under the sludge influence. 

"Pooling" finds them drifting from the assaults' for melodic intervals here and there . They blast back harder and angrier. There is a droney atmospheric piece with samples from "Frankenstein" sandwiched in here which for the purpose of this review I am ignoring. The mid tempo death metal drive of "Sparse Forest of Memories" benefits from a catchy riff in a way that does not break my "cool rifs alone does not a good song make" rule  . It also makes it clear that wile there are some sludge elements unlike Withered I reviewed earlier these guys are more committed to making death metal.

Their commitment to death metal is once again reaffirmed with "Mindless Future Breaker" which is on the more death doom side of the equation. It does not feel like they are trying to jump on any kind of band wagon with this but , serves as another dynamic to their sound, pouring on the speed mid way in. I will give this album a 9, though I am not sure how many more listens it is going to get from me, this is however and excellent job at doing what they do , so if you are into raw death metal with sludge tendencies then this album is a must. Another outstanding release on Caligari Record whois upholding their track record for some of the best underground metal today.