She has a history with black metal despite this not being a black metal, album there are still moments of such here. Her hovering in the periphery of the Norwegian black metal pays off more than you might think. The opening song is a choral piece that carries fey dreaminess to it. It is almost a lullaby to the fey realm. Then lashes back with a more scathing black metal assault on the second song. Though it is not just straight forward blasting for the entire song in fact it is the first two minutes before they introduce more melodics textures and sail the song off into those waters. It reminds me a little of older Alcest in how it transitions. This is poised to have a much wider appeal in terms of the overall sonics. "Nowhere Still Somewhere" is a blend of commercial European hard rock from the 90s with the gloom of the Gathering. The layering of sounds here high lights the excellent production quality.
The flow between the more atmospheric and smoothly sung passages to the more blackened ones reminds me of Myrkur , though the guitar here is more organic in the way it is strummed with almost an indie rock like grace. "Fortapt" is a long sprawling song that gives plenty of room for dynamics to be explored though some of the fat could have been trimmed in places. "I Close My Eyes So I Can See" is less dark and metallic, but a really well written song that flows well. It does eventually build into harsher vocals and the pace becoming more intense.
Sure, she is a great singer with a beautiful voice, but I am not sure closing the album with a Nightwish like ballad is the best move. Or really what the song as a whole contributes to the album, as it is not like we have not hear this kind of corseted romance fodder before. I will around this up to a 9 as the last song is really the only misstep. If you are a fan of this band's other work your will love this one, even if it is more accessible, It will be interesting to see how this bleed out into a larger market. This is being released on Season of Mist
The crossroads from which the genre we now know of as black metal were a place that punk, thrash, and death metal met at. Half of these were under ground when they came out and often had to be ordered from an ad in the back of a metal magazine as normal record stores did not carry them. We take this for granted today as they became though of a classic, the most important thing about black metal is it is dark, if it is Satanic which it should be then even better. Which as a kid growing up in the 80s if band was satanic then I just lumped in in with what we knew of as black metal at the time. Most metal heads in the 80s were listening to thrash at best, the rest were listening to what we now think of as power metal or cock rock. Bands like Venom became more popular as their albums began looked upon with reverence of the forefathers of what was to come. Here are the top 10 albums of the 80s that paved the way for what black metal is today.
10- GISM - "Detestation"
This 1984 release by Japanese punk rockers, is rough when it comes to even the production of the 80s. The feral sounds within it clearly left a mark on black metal and earn this album a place on this list.
9-Bathory - Under the Sign of the Black Mark"
Not even this project's best album, but in terms of black metal from this time period, it is way ahead of its time in the manner it marries pagan folk sounds into the metal. Many bands have tried since but tend to get stuck making Viking drinking songs.
8-Sarcofago - "INRI"
While very rough around the edges, the cult status of this album is not unfounded. One of those early death metal releases that sounds so evil and demented it crosses over, before anything was being labelled as blackened in the metal world.
7-Sabbat -" History of Time to Come "
This album shows how blurred the lines were in 1988 between thrash and what would become black metal. This band was founded by now producer and fill in guitarist for Judas Priest Andy Sneap. He was just a teenager when he founded this band. Hooky riffs are a selling point, but the signature to their sound has to be the raspy snarl of vocalist Martin Walkyier. It is still being imitated by black metal bands today.
6- Deicide- "s/t"
The layered vocals sounded like demons coming out of Glen Benton. He seemed very serious about hating Jesus which was impressive to me as a teenager. The music itself is a bulldozer and does not relent. Sure, this is a death metal classic, but it is feral enough to belong here.
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-5-Celtic Frost - "To the Mega Therion"
In 1985 no one thought of this as black metal, but we knew it was too weird and dark to be mentioned alongside many other bands aside from Venom and Mercyful Fate. My love for this band lies in their odder moments and willingness to experiment which is what gives this album a darker edge.
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4- Christian Death= "Sex Drugs and Jesus Christ"
No one will argue punks influence on black metal, but what about the darkest most blasphemous sub-genre of punk death rock? This band claims they made music for punks who like Halloween and though into the occult more than satanism they stepped up their disdain for religion on this album. Only Theater of Pain is largely regarded as their best work, which is true, but this one is darker and more akin to what blakc metal would become as you can hear traces of them in bands like Watain.
3-Venom- "Black Metal"
Of course, this album has to be in the top 3. This band was almost as punk as they were metal since they were as much about their attitude and raw macho aggression of their music. They were good enough musicians to get the job done but not close to the two bands taking top place above them, though this album stood the test of time and how can it not be included?
2-Slayer- "Hell Awaits"
One of the biggest bands in metal was darker than they are now. The speed they played with certainly influenced black metal as well as the evil feeling of their riffs. We now know that the whole satanic thing for Slayer was just a gimmick, yet their love for things like Nazi war crimes and serial killers is like worshipping darkness in its human incarnation. Not their best album, but their most black metal one.
1-Mercyful Fate - "Don't Break the Oath"
The big reason this is number one is because the songs have stood the test of time. Another reason is the King is not playing around, he is an actual Satanist, and the feeling permeates the music. All black metal that came after this owes this band a debt. Black metal is not about its rawness that is punk it is about its darkness.
If I say the name Mark Lanegan you mind might go to the Screaming Trees The band vaulted him into his iconic status. But He left his mark as a musician with greater depth on his worked that continued on after the Screaming Trees. The world lost a greater talent than just a rock singer now that Mark Lanegan is dead at the age of 57. He was like the Oscar Wilde of grunge, now he is the voice of wisdom crawling from the shadows, almost a bard of Tom Waits magnitude.
Mark died his home in Ireland. We should all be surprised Mark Lanegan made it to 57. He lived a life wrestling with addiction and mental illness. Early reports suggest it was covid related, but the singer had already penned a book called 'Devil in a Coma" regarding his experiences with co-vid. It is likely that he had worn his internal organs out from abuse so he never fully recovered, or the media are like ghouls when it comes to death so we might never know. Early speculation was suicide, which lines up with his grunge peers he survived. This pretty much leave Eddie Vedder as the last of the grunge singers.
After Screaming Trees he went on to work with Queens of the Stoneage. His smoky baritone known for slithering around grooves provide a change in mood from the other vocal approaches of that band. Rather than try to carry a torch for the music of an era which was a cultural shift more than just a music genre. I think this more reflective nature he possessed kept him alive as long as it did a rip 30 years longer than his friend Kurt who joined the 27 club. What I appreciate about Mark and the music he left behind for us is he died leaving a body of work that is free form venturing forward into lost years of confusion aging rock stars sometimes never come back from. His memory is intact and honored, we celebration what he left behind as he is passing on into the sweet oblivion.
Here is a curious case. This project from Ireland released this album last year on Bandcamp, then they got signed to Signal Rex for the actual physical release. It is black metal history month, so the history of this album online does not make it any less vital of a 2022 release. It is only an ep, 37 minutes of music so still longer than "Regin in Blood". I often lament about bands focusing on a sound rather than songs. This project manages to do both, but they have also managed to make the sound they created to throb with an unsettling darkness that is in and of its self-attention grabbing. While I say that now, I hope this does not mean that for the remainder of the album, this is all they do.
I can understand why they are compared to Leviathan but hear something that is unique to who they are while they follow down that path to madness. The second song, throbs with a malice more closely aligned with what you expect from black metal as long as you are not expecting black metal to just be blast beats. They do go into blast beats for the last song which is a sprawling almost 14-minute journey into the abyss. The second song that is a song and not the interludes which for the purpose of this review I am not giving much thought to as they feel like they are just parts of the songs they bookend. They second song has a weird girl's voice panned in there, it might have been my meds playing tricks on me, but there was some spooky shit going on there.
The production is very interesting there is a rawer more lo-fi sound to the crescendo of the last song. The first song is smooth in the darkness and some of the sounds are crisper than others. It is very organic, and I think a fresh take on the Cvlt sound though the bulk of this album the focus is more on the eerie darkness being summoned here. When I reviewed Watain's new album I declared it was the bar that had been raised for black metal to measure up this year. There are things these guys do that is different than Watain, the bass tone has more thump. They are more experimental, but not as polished or melodic as Watain. For this reason, they are a 9.5, as it still works great and is worth repeat listens, highly reccomended if you seek darkness
This band from Sweden sticks to a pretty cvlt 90s Swedish black metal sound. Not overly leaning into the Dissection side of things. I can take this sort of thing in low doses. I appreciate what is going on. There is a measure of melody worked into the mystique. The drummer is blazing fast so the rest of the song follows suit. Not the most original thing I have heard. But they are good at what they are doing. The vocals are more of a texture, they are a mid-range rasp that screams into the echo of the void. At the end of the day the opening track will leave me asking, ok what else can you guys do. If this is answered with more blast beats, I will be less impressed with each song.
The second song is not as blast beaten. It works off more of a gallop though does not really veer wildly in terms of dynamics as it comes straight for your throat with little in the way of a subtle touch. There are some lower growls but that is about all of the variation we are getting here. From there they seem pretty intent at blasting ahead on you at full speed. There are some periods of simmering and most of these are met with firing back with the same kind of iron headed determination. I am glad to hear that as a whole black metal is moving away from the lo-fi production and murky mixes as this album is intense but the sounds are crip so you can hear what is going on. On one section you can even hear the bass! The songs do tend to run a little long. They are more adventurous in their arrangements, but all the moving parts could just as easily fit into half the time. This band's straightforward songs tend to sound just like everyone else doing this sort of thing.
Eventually I begin to feel a little more of what they are doing as long as they are bringing more atmosphere and emotion to the table, despite the moments they do this the urge to blast it all away into oblivion are not resisted. Before I get to the last song this album has begun to feel like something I am enduring rather than enjoying, as music allowed to fade into the background it works better. The last song does have some cool odd shifts to the otherwise standard black metal epic guitar riffs. I will give this album a 7 as they are good at the sound they have created and play them well they are just not that original and nothing sets them apart for me.
I have already spoken on how the origin of a music's demographics effects the vibrational feeling of it. With black metal capturing darkness is key. This Indonesian project prove me right as it hits all the right notes and tries to fake you out by leaning at first more toward the melodic folk side of the genre. Perhaps that would have been a better path for it. It is not until the fourth song that I hear anything that sounds like pure wrath from an emotional standpoint. The fact this album has a really polished professional sound is good on one hand, but if this had a rawer darker mix it might have made it sound more like black metal and less like buzzing fast orchestral metal. The drumming is great because the drummer from White Ward played on this session.
There is nothing that chills you or really makes you feel any of the ways that black metal should make you feel. Is it all played well? Yes. The midrange raspy screamed vocals are performed as they should be, but it is the feeling that should be conveyed which is where I begin to have a hard time believing what he is trying to sell me. The dynamic range of "Footprints of a Lost Child" is more convincing. It is well arranged, and the execution is excellent, not sure the first three songs measure up as well in these regards. "Those Who Stand Still" has enough variation that it does not just blend together and sound like the previous song, which the front end of the album is more guilty of. The blasting does get a little old a little fast.
Things get a great deal more melodic for the title track that opens the album. It is really more like an outro piece as this instrumental track is a wild departure from the metal that dominates the bulk of this album. It is very well done on every level expect a glaring variation from what this album normally sounds like. Overall this is well done it just does not hve the darkness or danger of black metal, I will give this album an 8.5.
This French band is no stranger to the heritage of black metal their country is known for. The vocalist used to be in Anorexia Nervosa , so that have that going for them. What they have going against them is the fact I got this album the same week I got the new Watain. As far as 2022 goes Watain is the album to beat when it comes to black metal. So, this and every black metal album I review for the rest of the year is going to be measured against it. These guys sound as if they are every bit as serious as Watain is about making black metal, but how are they as songwriters is the first question I am going to ask after my ears stop ringing from the powerful first track that hit like a storm. They let some cold chilling chords ring out, but otherwise are not bringing anything new to black metal sonically. I like the eerie tones the guitar creates toward the end of the second song but needed more of that overall.
They hit with with a frosty sounding blur of anger on "Bellum". While they have a sound that is black metal, the actual song writing takes a back seat to the sound. I like how samples are later introduction to shift the narrative later in the song, but actual music does little to aid the effort. The depressive throb of "Fames" is much more effective and captures the mood that I listen to black metal for. Anorexia Nervosa would be a band that fell into the sub gerne of depressive black metal, so those vibes are strong here though as a whole this album is more of a straight-ahead black metal album.
After the break for depressive reflection in the shadows they are back raging out you with all the fire of a burning church, it takes three minutes before a dynamic shift occurs and then it simmers in the darkness for a bit. The album ends with a more color by numbers song that steps slightly left of the darker more depressive sounds that I like form these guys. I will give this album an 8.5, it is better than what I expected from them, if you were a fan of Anorexia Nervosa you will like this even if it is not as depressive.
Glad it worked out that I got to review one of my all-time favorite Black Metal bands for Black Metal History Month. They might be my favorite tough call between these guys and Emperor. Now with their 7th full length Watain continues to show how they change and yet stay the same with each album. The first song is a color by numbers ripper from these guys, the production is crisp and big without losing what makes them sound like themselves. In fact, if you stripped away a lot of the symphonic tones from Dimmu Borgir's earlier work comparisons can be drawn sonically. "Howling" has some catchy riffing that makes this more apparent. There is some dark and tasty guitar work on "Serimosa".
'Black Cunt" is not what I thought it would be like. With that title I assumed it would be a blasty punk thing, but instead there are goth moments. The blasting fury does not occur until "Leper's Grace". This one I can see these guys playing live as they tend to focus more on the fast in your face ripping moments from their albums. They have a cool thrashing riff toward the end. "Not Sun Nor Man Nor God" is a melodic piano interlude. "Before the Cataclysm" is another fast blaster. Then about a minute and thirty seconds in is one of the coolest riffs I have heard these guys summon yet. They do not hang on it long and back thrashing before this song wanders off into a dark breakdown. This sense of dynamics is what puts the band above their peers when it comes to today's Swedish Black Metal. Their game has stepped way the fuck up with this album.
Farida of Devil's Blood lends her voice to the eerie "We Remain". In comparison the in-your-face speed driven rage of "Funeral Winter" is not as compelling, but that is because they already raised the bar for themselves pretty high here. The song does still have some melodic moments. While up-tempo the last song is more deliberate and the tremolo guitar that coasts over it does not seem like they are defaulting to the conventions of the genre as the tempo riffs under it. I will give this album a 10 it shows the band willing to grow while being true to who they are. Not sure how they hell a black metal band is going to put out a better album this year, and it's only February
I used to think of these guys as the Japanese version of Bad Brains. The second song is more pounding. It is clear that Darkthrone's punk moments draw heavily from this sound. The pace is more punk like for "ABC Weapons". The vocal has more of a growl to them when they are not choking. The guitar becomes more metallic for the gallop of "nih Nightmare". The thing I saw all the time about where a band is from influencing their sound on the level of its very vibration. The more NWOBHM style riffing is pulled off but there is something wrong in how it feels that is more than the rough production.
Things slow down a little for "Document One" yes, the song titles are a little awkward. It is more than likely a good thing the lyrics are in Japanese. It falls somewhere between punk and metal. They speed up and there are sections of lyrics that sound like they are in English. When you can understand the lyrics, they are pretty nasty, in an effective way. Songs like "Nuclear Armed Hogs" are pretty crude. You can hear they influenced bands like Choking Victim, though I think Choking Victim does this better. They are better song writers, but something can be said for the energy with which this album was made.
"Meaning Corrupted" almost sounds like Motley Crue at the beginning. It is one of the albums best songs as it is also one of the most metal ones."M.A.N" coasts long that almost Dokken like riff. There is another cock rocking riff that opens up "Meaning Corrupted" but the song generally devolves into more straight up punk.The last song is some of the albums most refined guitar playing it is almost like Iron Maiden. Not very original in this regard, but well done. That is for what they are doing the vocals are still barked and this almost sounds live. The classic reputation of this album might be more legendary than what goes down on the album though that is not to say even as imperfect as this album is it did not influence black metal.
Taking another break from the black metal theme of the month to write about this album I have been looking forward to from Finnish Funeral Doom Masters Shape of Despair. One of my favorite bands from one of my favorite sub - genres. They continue to not be bound within the confines of the sub-genre in terms of the sonic colors brough to the table in the song writing process yet are very consistent in being consistent for their fans. Sure, there is a doom gazing element to the ambiance of how this song coasts, but it works well. The second song glides out of the opening track and into the second as the atmosphere creates a uniform drone. The melodies with in it are rather subtle and a lower growl takes over the narrative. The female vocals offering a counter point. It is darker than the first song.
The guitar to "Solitary Downfall" has a more oppressive heaviness to its weight. This gradually dissipates into the dreamy haze with the vocals come in like mournful choir. The melodies are minimal with an intent more to hypnotize. There is a n ebb and flow the drummer is laying back and just doing enough to steer the ship. The formula is reversed for "Reflection in Slow Time". I cannot tell if I am not depressed enough or too depressed, but it is going to take a little while for some of this to grow on me. They have collected all the sounds I like music to have, but yet to really be hooked i, though I enjoy what I have heard from this, and continue to listen to it.
"Forfeit" is the first song whose emotions click for me. It reminds me of Witnesses so some extent. The thick haze of ambiance is there for you to gaze into, but everything clicks fully into place where the previous songs are great sonically but drone more. "Inner Desolation" has that more Type of Negative feel when it comes to the depressive nature of what they do that first drew me to this band. Things break all the way down at the five-minute mark and from that point on it could have been a new song rather than an over 11 minute one, but oh, well, not a major thing. As of right now I will give this album a 9.5 and see how it grows on me, it is a pretty stunning piece of work overall.
At first it was looking like this band from Sweden was going to lean more onto the death metal side of the blackened death metal equation. Things are off to a good start the band has members firmly rooted in metal with former members of Necrophobic numbered among them. This might be the band's debut album, but it is made by guys who have been around the block. The first two songs are very solid, and I am optimistic until they take on turn on the third song which feels like they are playing fast just to play fast and lose all sense of hook and groove due to this which is a rookie mistake.
I regain some hope on "Luciferian Age" as it opens with a clean guitar tone and a riff that sound almost more punk. From there things get interesting with dynamic ebb and flow rather than getting trampled under the conventional metal approach. It proves these guys are actually decent song writers when they are not playing like they have something to prove. "This Night Seems Endless" starts off on a darker and more melodic note. It is more interesting than " He Who Saw the Abyss" which is driven by double bass and feels more like your average Swedish death metal band. The vocals are more of a black metal croak not far removed from Watain and the riffs improve midway into the song.
The title track is thrashing but gets too caught up in the speed of the metal and feels more rushed than raging. "The Origin" serves as proof of what does work but slowing down and giving everything more room to breathe creating a more powerful sound. The lyrics stand out due to the more deliberate pace and you can hear the song is about praying to an absent god. " Sorrow , Fire , Hate" finds them defaulting back to the hyper fast blur of aggression taken out on their instruments. The flow of double bass does not relent, this keeps the last song moving but also stunts the melodic scop of what they do. The rasp pf the vocals feels more abrasive as the riff slowly drones you into it. I will give this album a 8.5, they are great at what they do. The album comes out March 11th.
While I would prefer getting a full length from this Italian band, I will take whatever I can get. The first song steps back from the more death metal infused take on black metal these guys normally have and finds the pace dropping down to something more comparable to Celtic Frost, though dressed up in darker atmosphere and slightly less theatrical in the delivery than they have been in the past. They pick up the pace and get more aggressive for " All in One Night". The production value sounds like it has been dialed up a little. The feels heavier, though less hooky than previous albums.
"Nightmare Be Thy Name" is an odd choice of a Mercyful Fate song to cover. You have always been able to hear the Mercyful Fate influence in this band's music, mainly the guitar parts, which are what was nailed in this cover. Granted it is for the best that they did not try to go far King Diamond's vocal approach as that would have been an epic fail. They stuck to the kind of snarls they are good at and still made this work. I am the worst person to try to sell a Mercyful Fate cover to since King Diamond is my favorite metal singer. "Circle Zero" finds an odd vocal approach, it is still harsh vocals, just done in a way where it sounds like the air is being sucked in rather than pushed out in a growl. The bass playing is very interesting here as well. I like how this song is angular and different from what you typically think of them doing.
On this ep they show more of their range as a band than most of their full-length album. Though their album 's convey a sound truer to who they are. As the last song finds them sounding like every other newer death metal band. Are they able to hold their own and do a pretty good job of playing the typical sound of death metal in 2022 ? Yes, but where are all the creepy satanic horror movie sounds that define who they are? For that reason I will round this down to a 9, which is still better than what we are hearing from 90 percent of the death metal out today, so maybe Chris Barnes is right, we will have to wait and see, but they kinda lost their black metal touch here. It was just a touch they had to their sound but aside from the Mercyful Fate song it is missed.,
In 1985 no one thought of this as black metal, but we knew it was too weird and dark to be mentioned alongside many other bands aside from Venom and Mercyful Fate. Varg was often picture wearing a Celtic Frost shirt though he would admit to not really being a fan. That is something that cannot be said of a band like Darkthrone. It has left it's mark on metal for sure. You might find more bands covering " the Usurper" which is driven by a cool riff, I just think " Jewel Throne" is a more interesting song. It has more attack, which is not something my love for this band is contingent on as I feel their strength lies in their odder moments. They did get weirder with each album making this one a fairly straight forward release for them. The production carries a raw buzz to the guitars.
There is a more doom like vibe going into "Dawn of Meggido". Symphonic ambiance hinted at during the album's intro begin to rise to the surface once more. "Eternal Summer" is solid but works off a more straight forward chug so not as compelling at the rest of the songs on the album's a-side. Yes, since this album came out in 1985 we are talking about which side of the tape or album it was on. I had the tape. Even though it is more thrashing it is hard to argue against "Circle of the Tyrants". They keep this mood going with more aggressive chugging on "North Winds". "Fainted Eyes" finds the pace picking up to almost a punk tempo, but the punches anchor it back into metal.
After a track of noise, we get into the last actual song " Necromantical Screams" . This stands out due to the operatic soprano hovering around the song's edges. When I first heard this song, it really struck me as setting this band apart from their peers in their willingness to experiment. Here is a case of where I am going to round this album's score up because I have heard some of these songs so much over the years, I think I might take them for granted.
The band from Brazil was way ahead of the times to release something this brutal in 1987. Their singer Wagner Lamounier went on to be the original singer of Sepultura. The vocals are closer to death metal. The first two songs assault you with blast beats and things do not get darker and more deliberate until the almost doomy riff of "Nightmare" It does eventually reach blasting speed again. The influence of early Slayer is all over this one. Where these guys set themselves apart is on some of the colder sounding chord progressions that what we now think of as black metal as borrowed from in large doses.
It is a more interesting sound than the more straight ahead blasty mc nasty that they throw down on "Christs Death". The most impressive part was the attempt to hit a Tom Ayra like falsetto scream in the middle of the song before it slows into a dirge. The tracking of the vocals is interesting when they are at their most demonic and makes me think of Deicide. "Satannas" is more about speed than not. There is more dynamics to "Ready to Fuck" which is far from sensual in any way. Even as an invocation of lust it is fairly limited in capturing the mood.
By the time we get to "Deaththrash" it is blowing by and fading into the background as up to this point the songs have begun to sound a little bit the same. Played back-to-back against "the Last Slaughter" you can barely tell the difference. The rawer production to "Black Vomit" is the only thing that really makes that one stands out. Sure, it might have been ahead of its time and they do thrash up some impressive riffs and summon demonic enough vocals I will give this one an 8.5, because heaviness and viciousness takes precedence over songwriting sometimes.
Here is an album that shows how blurred the lines were in 1988 between thrash and what would become black metal. This band was founded by now producer and fill in guitarist for Judas Priest Andy Sneap. He was just a teenager when he founded this band. There is a little more hook in the groove of the opening track though one of the signatures to their sound has to be the raspy snarl of vocalist Martin Walkyier. Sometimes his accents are not unlike those of Chuck Billy in Testament's earliest output, but higher in pitch, the sneer holds a similar contempt that can be found in the work of bands like 1349.
One key element to black metal is a focused disdain for Abrahamic religion, which can be felt on "Behind the Crooked Cross". Rather than rehash the same kinds of shock value horror movie Satanic images bands like Venom and Slayer were parading around they dipped into the history of the crusades and their English heritage connected to such. "Horned is the Hunter" is a little more deliberate in its more mid-tempo pace chug. Martin's lyrics are a lot for him to spit out into the verse and can seem unwieldly at times. At over eight minutes it's an epic for 1988. It's when the drums lock into more of a stomp that you hear how things could be, though they default to the speedier blasts. The more moshy grooves are better than the blasty feeling parts.
There is a little more of a classic metal feel going into "Those Who Died". The manic nature of vocals is more crazed than what thrash bands were doing at the time. They had more purpose in the song than the vocals of metal bands today that tend to be more obligatory. The instrumental " A Dead Man's Robe" is not far from what other bands of this time were doing. The attack is more like Flotsam & Jetsam. " The Church Bizarre" is trongest when the chugs are at a more deliberate pace. I will round this one up to a 9. Was ahead of it's time for sure in terms of intensity.
Scandinavia and Norther Europe are not the only places with the right energy for black metal, solid black metal has come from France, America and Greece. Infact this Greek black metal band who for reasons unknown changed their name have been at it since 1996. They pick up where they typically leave off with a big yet feral pounding of blasts, though it is one of the most well-done examples of this kind of attack. They do not settle on that sound and then just drone you to death for the rest of the album as the second song has varied tempos, and layers. The ritualistic tone is very left-hand path, peppered with varied mystery schools. Easch song serving as its own rite to one of the infernal lords, or gates if you want to see it in the symbolic nature.
"Belial" has a chanted style of singing that is almost operatic in nature not unlike Urfaust. In the metal sense unlike their Greek country men, they use and attack not unlike Watain's bigger and more dramatic moments. They also have a great deal of hooky riffs in here. You do not have to be down with this ritual to band your head to it, though it would be a lot cooler I you. They recorded this album in their own chambers, which is impressive as this album sounds great, it was mixed and masted in an actual studio which I have sure factored in. The "Satan" part of the ritual is more classic metal, almost Judas Priest in the twin guitar harmonies. That is however before the more dissonant throb of guitar kicks in. Some of these passages even going down the path Dissection paved.
Things get darker for "Chronozon" though sonically it falls closer in line with more traditional black metal even with the nuanced guitar lines. The final minutes of the song find it creeping out from under a breakdown that is eerie. The sitr of a din of blast feeling riffs to climax out of it. "Hecate" opens with some synths giving breathing room for the up-tempo tremolo to come. In terms of its epic scope, it feels more in line with say Immortal. It does lock into a more classic metal sounding riff after accelerating to the end. "Drakon" begins the close of the album with a droning ambiance. It mainly simmers on the atmosphere. I will give this album a 9, it might be their best so far, though leans more into some Swedish sounds than expected, respect the overall tone they are going for here and think they accomplished what they were going for.
The French band's 2018 album "Banlieue Triste" took the top spot as Doom album of the year. This time around things are dialed back in the metal department. They straddle the fence sonically in a zip code closer to post-nu metal Deftones and Katatonia. There is a driving riff when the opening track kicks in once the clouds of atmosphere have lifted. The lead single "Cold & Distant" is more accessible than anything we have heard from them thus far. It's a pretty driving song, that is catchy without being too poppy in the hook. It very well written and goes to show accessibility is not always a sign of weakness.
A Cure like bass line leads into "Who Wants to Die Old". This is also where it feels like the album begins to sail out into the gray of its atmosphere. The vocals have more of a hushed urgency to them. Midway into the song harder edged guitar comes in. To call it metal would be to call a band like A Perfect Circle metal. Dark rock becomes a more fitting description with this album. But whatever it is that you want to call this it should be known that they continue to excel at what they do. The vocals were always cool, but they spent more time in the booth getting every note perfect. "Storm Resounds " is a ballad but a darkly beautiful one, that still has balls even without resorting to conveying this is the normal manner most rock bands do.
On "Supreme" they simmer for half the song. When the guitar does drop it's a similar guitar riff that they use in almost a post punk manner to drive the tension. "Pariah and the Plague" is more atmospheric. It's melodic with some really great guitar tones. The entire album sounds good, it is just more intangible and lingers in its introspection. An instrumental of this sort was not what you would expect from them. The title track is more moving. Darkly introspective as the rest of the album, it makes less of an attempt to rock out and brooding more than simmers. "Second Wind" is more deliberate, which in turn feels heavier. The vocals are perhaps the album's most emotive. " A Thousand Miles Away" lingers on a drone for a while before stomping into perhaps the album's only song I would refer to as doom, and most certainly it's heaviest. They know there is more than one way to be heavy , this is perhaps the most overt, but the album as a whole is more about capturing a mood, which they have, it is going to take a little time to grow on me, but I respect that they did not try to recreate the previous album and made steps forward, I will round this one up to a 10. Out on Nuclear Blast.
The first time I saw Alice Cooper was in 1986 on the "Constrictor" tour. He was 38 years old, so around his vocal peak. Cooper has never been numbered among the best vocal talents, he works well with the range he has, over the years his voice has gained more grit from aging. Now at 74 his sobriety and time spent active on the golf course are paying off. He stayed in good voice and pretty spry for the entire set of almost 20 songs. Granted some of these were done in a medley form where the band just kind of jammed out a riff or two from said songs, "Black Widow" being one of the most noted examples. When you have over forty years of music to pull from you obviously can play everything.
His band was not much different than the line-up I saw with him when he opened up for Maiden in 2012, which was the last time I saw him. The biggest change was the addition of Nita Strauss on guitar. She injected a great deal of enthusiasm and energy into the band. Everyone seemed to be having fun onstage. What surprised me the most was the interesting choice of a set list that leaned just as heavy on his late 80s early 90s albums as it did his 70s work. He played songs from "Constrictor", "Raise Your Fist and Yell", "Trash" and "Hey Stoopid". Seven songs total from this era vs nine from what would be considered his classics or greatest hits era. The staples "I'm Eighteen", " Under My Wheels", "School's Out" , "No More Mr Nice Guy" and "Billion Dollar Babies" were all accounted for. He only played two of his most recent songs.
Even after seeing him 5 times previous, I had never heard him play "Roses on White Lace" before from "Raise Your Fist and Yell" so that was a highlight for me. It made up for no "Welcome to My Nightmare" though that album had the most songs to make an appearance, granted as I mentioned earlier sometimes it was just a riff that they jammed off of its theme. I feel like this performance measure up well against his others, I went in with the faint worry at the back of my mind things might have declined in the past 10 years, but those fears were unfounded. If you get a chance to catch him this year, be sure to do so.
After hearing people online saying this album was better than Iron Maiden's most recent album "Senjtutsu" I decided to give it a shot. Though such claims seem far-fetched from the get-go as Saxon's waning popularity was largely due to the fact their sound has not evolved greatly from the 80s. where Iron Maiden over time transitioned from the 80s metal sound over the years to a more progressive sound that did not wear the 80s as heavily on its sleeve. Biff Byford and Paul Quinn serve as the only two original members, though their drummer has been with the band since their fourth album "Denim and Leather". The opening track upholds my suspicions as it does not find the band venturing past the sound of their 80s work.
The first song that shows any other 89s fist pumping is the third song "Pilgrimage". The chords ring out in a manner similar to AC/DC's "Hell's Bells". Though I am not sure anyone would accuse these guys of being the most original band in the world. While defending the faith and sticking to what works is an admirable trait, think of an album like "Painkiller" where Judas Priest did this but without remaining stuck in 1984, "Dambusters" almost sounds like a parody of 80's metal or a Deep Purple b-side. At 71 Byford is eight years older than Dickinson, his voice has held up pretty well. Though In the studio the same could be said of Rob Halford, yet Rob's voice shows the wear and tear of the years live. Despite the Priest like attack of the opening riff "Remember the Fallen" would be rock n roll if not for Byford's dramatic vocal stylings. The chorus is more like their "Innocence is No Excuse "era work where their sound became watered down as an attempt to go for a more commercial sound.
"Super Nova" is more Preist style in its attack. Byford's falsetto highs are good for a man his age but layered as more of background affect rather than given the spotlight. Granted the metal yodel is a keystone of the 80s and not something embraced by metal today. The more melodic section the guitar solo erupts upon is pretty cool, but nothings really mind blowing and in term of technicality these guys do not come anywhere near what Maiden pulls off. "Lady in Gray" might show a side of the band that influenced Queensryche, but Geoff Tate and the boys did this better in their heyday. But for what this is "Lady in Gray" is one of the album's better songs, melodic passages while sticking to a chug out of 1987.
"All For One" sounds like it could have come from a Fastaway album. Though the chorus is a little more upbeat than what they would have done. For cheesy might be another way to say it. Byford's voice does not have the same balls to it that Bruce's does. "Black is the Night" might have the heaviest riff on the album. Though the vocals kind drag it back into the realm of spandex. While this is impressive in terms of power, even one of the album's strongest moments seems rather regressive when compared to what Maiden does. Too many of the cooler riffs just seem like wasted landscape for guitar solos. The song title "Living Living on the Limit" says it all when it comes to the scope of originality to be found here. No wonder these guys were the inspiration for Spinal Tap.
If you think about all the great artists, they never end where they begin The Beatles , David Bowie, Led Zeppelin all had careers that saw their sound grow, even metal bands like Sabbath, Maiden and Slayer all found their sound progress rather than allow themselves standing in one place, when Saxon changed the ebb and flow was more about watering down or solidifying something they did in one fixed era of time. I will give this album an 8.5 as they are great at encapsulating the 80s, but 24 albums later they should have a wider range than they show here. A lesson they should have learned back when they got dropped by their label in 1988. So if your tasted are still stunted in one period of time, you have already heard them do this before, but they are still great at being a one trick pony.
I used to call this column "Looking Back in Anger" and perhaps will, this month since it is Black Metal History month a subtitle like that makes things too long. I hope most of you know this Slayer album came out in 1985 and was the band's second full length studio album. While thrash this album is darker than most other thrash releases at this time and help serve as the foundation black metal as we know it today was built upon. The ripping title track is one of the bands strongest songs. They continue to hit you with a bulldozer of fury on "Kill Again" which is blazing fast Not as compelling as the opener but still solid.
There is more groove to the commanding "At Dawn the Sleep" which allows them to simmer on the darkness. While Slayer was always just playing around with Satanism for shock value, they did succeed at capturing dark feelings in their music at this time, I think this is due to Jee Hanneman's interests in the dark side that created this. Serial killers and Nazis are perhaps darker than Hammer Horror window dressing. Midway when they drop that half time riff it's just with crushing power. It is easy to hear how when they came out they fooled me as a kid. It still sounds great even if this is all pretend. Then pour the speed back on and the results are not as impressive as the previous song today, but for when it came out well that is another story. Without question Dave Lombardo established him as one of the best metal drummers ever which he solidified when "Reign in Blood" was released.
Alice Cooper already covered the subject matter of "Necrophiliac" this is just taken to more of an in-your-face extreme, well because this is Slayer it is also one of the album's best songs. "Crypts of Eternity" is a deep cut band the band that never gets the recognition it deserves. It has some solid head banging grooves that showcase the band's ability to create very heavy music that still serves a song. "Hardening of the Arteries" finds Slayer barreling ahead at full strength, not playing to what I consider the bands strong points in terms of songwriting. Overall, this album excels, so I will give it a 9.5. Not their best but heading in that direction.
Having long championed this project so was looking forward to this album. There is a dark hazy multi layered sonic wall of synths that reminds me of Type O Negative. The smoother croon of vocals from Shore adds to this comparison. His vocals get more aggressive on the second song. There is still a more pervading sense of atmosphere creating a haze over things. The first of the two songs that feature an appearance by members of Perturbator and Tool (Carey and Chancellor) is "Centurion" it is dark and very bleak. It has a swelling tension and works as a song even though the contribution of the guests gets lost in the din of the machines.
"Maiden Star" has a more abrasive crunch, off set by the more organic warmth of the synths. The ambiance almost becomes kraut rocky. "Misery" you can get the feeling Danny Carey is playing, though for him it is rather straight forward. It is one of the album's best songs, not due to their contributions but due to the fact it is just well written. It took me a second or four to realize "Glorybox" is a cover of a Portishead song. Granted more industrial and rushing of course so I am all for it. Things go more experimental for "Blacksmith". The problem is it focuses more on creating sounds that attack your senses rather than being a strongly written song. It is like some of Skinny Puppy's more noise leaning work.
The noise and experimentation of the previous track is given more contrast, by the almost rock sensibilities of the title track that closes the album. This is most felt in the delivery of the vocals that is some of the album's most dynamic work while not adhering to any form of traditional rock hooks. I will round this one up to a 10 as the more experimental touches that detract from the song writing are balanced out by the songs where he really goes above and beyond by striving to push himself as a singer and a song writer rather than just being the guy who makes music with machines.
This is for all practical purposes the album the genre took its name from. It gets credited by influencing a great many of today's black metal artists, but is it any good? I was really into it as a teenager, but I was also more into punk then, and Venom much like Motorhead straddles the line between being a punk band and a metal band. The first song is a anthem with a punk drive to it, very straight forward and works off its energy and attitude. The same can be said for " To Hell and Back". It is not until "Buried Alive" that they actually convey darkness. There is a very rock n roll feel to the groove the guitar solo is over. " Raise the Dead" sounds like an extension of of "Buried Alive" but it is like a faster dynamic the song would have built into.
"Teacher's Pet" is more punk and lyrically pretty silly. "Leave Me in Hell" is a rock n roll ripper that makes more sense black metal could have evolved from, though going back to listen to it this could be a pumped-up AC/DC on more high voltage drugs. "Sacrifice" picks up where that song left off, though there is a darker malice to this one. I think here is where it bears mentioning, that Venom was always just playing around with the occult imagery for shock value, much like Slayer, and that it can be felt in the more party flavor of the music, where a Mercyful Fate or even Celtic Frost album has a more tangible darkness to it. There is a more Van Halen like sense of adventure in the guitar for "Heaven's on Fire". It is another song that gets caught up in the momentum invoking more of a punk sound than Satanic one.
Perhaps the blackest song on the album is also the album's best "Countess Bathory". This lyrically as more Hammer Horror feel, but the chorus has the album's best vocal hook. Cronos snarls his way through this entire album like an ill-mannered pirate, with "Buried Alive" being one of the rare moments where some other feeling is conveyed by his delivery. They end the album on a metal note with the riff to "Don't Burn the Witch" being pretty impressive with the menace it carries. I will round this one up to a 9.5, not making a flawless classic, but merit's much of it's hype for a reason that can be heard here, I think it is just as much of a punk album as it is a metal one, but only scored that high as they care about song wirting more than your average punk band.
The mystic nature of black metal causes it to be more sensitive to the region from it was spawned. You might say Spain is capable of delivering and perhaps they are, but can this project prove me wrong? This is the 3rd album so they should know what they are doing by now. The mood of the opening track had me sold until the blasting took off and then the mood became secondary. Once the blasting took off this began to sound like everything else. Props for a bass you can hear in the mix. When it slows down the instrumentation has room to breathe. The vocals work for what is going on at present, but my fear for this album is the sound is going to be uniform and every song will be the same.
Much like other forms of extreme music the heaviness or oppressive nature might wow you when they storm the gates on the first song. After that I ask the question... but can you write a song? Skilled at capturing sounds, that part has been perfected. The opening of the second song convinces me this. The vocals are pretty much an afterthought and if this does not change by the next song will get old fast. The song song is more about the layered drone. The frenzied blasts of the third song does little to help this album's case. The song does slow in more of a pulse but then blasts back up. Thye fourth track is little more than an instrumental interlude.
The most interesting riff might come from this fifth song/ There is a slower grind to the riff of the sixth song. It does bear to mention these songs do not just sprawl out into the bleak nothingness from which they came. They are rather simple in their arrangement with maybe three sections with which they shift between, sometimes just going from fast to slower. The slow is maintained well on the 6th some to create dismal picture for your ears. The last song does not begin to redeem itself until three minutes in then becomes sonically more impressive as it hits that bleak sweet spot for me. I wish there was more of that. This album is a mixed, bag the vocals are the part that proves my point about egregore playing a part as the notes played break boundaries, the vocals express torment but not from the same place as if this came from somewhere that capture the depression of living in a cold dark place, so I round this album down to an 8, which is still better than most bands are going to achieve. Out on Dissociative Visions.
In 1986 when this album came out this was the most unhinged thing I had heard. "Master of Puppets" was out, and I like it, but sounded like a cross between Motorhead and Iron Maiden to me, this album had more of a punk feel. When I asked the older guy who worked at the record store intown what was the evilest record he told me this one, but I had to order it from Combat Records since they did not have it in. This elusive quality probably added to the mystique. Let's face it this is heavier than what you were listening to at 11. "Bloodbath" opens the album falling somewhere between thrash and death rock, thanks to the whine of vocals. Having not listened to this album for at least 30 years, I forgot how it sounds kind of like Death Angel, though this came out a year before "Ultra Violence". There is a raw unhinged quality not unlike Black Metal of today, think bands like Midnight or Destroyer 666.
"City in Chains" also falls along the almost punk lines. A little more snarl and this would not be far removed from Darkthrone's. 'Wasteland" is a better song as there is a dark sleazy quality to the guitar, in some way the moan of the vocals reminds me of Celtic Frost. I think the punk qualities of this album aged well and I am glad I went back to listen to this. There cover of the Stooge's "Search and Destroy" works though the vocals are the weak spot as you cannot match Iggy's deliver on that one. The guitarist and the drummer are the best of the bunch with this band, the guitarist nails the solos on this one. In 1986 there were not a ton of bands covering the Stoogers. "Assassin" is more punkish though it does carry a metal edge, but is Venom relay any heavier than what is going on here? It is a better song than "Speed Thrills", though I can appreciate the more feral snarls the vocals crack into. The heaviest song might be "Witch Queen". The bass finally steps up and adds some heft.
Things get even more punk on "Dancing of the Edge". Then "Metal Messiah" is pretty much straight up thrash. Overall, this album is actually better than I remember it, not sure if it is good enough to make the top 10 black metal albums of the 80's list that I am working. Gratned there are some weaknesses that I am not letting a sense of nostalgia blind me to as it can get sloppy at times, so I will give this an 8.5.
This German band rather than following an anti-cosmic path, is rathe enamored by the cosmos using sci fi themes. They carry a similar rage as Dissection despite this lyrical difference. Very precise they charge full speed ahead but still allow for room for dynamics. It takes a few listens for it grow on me and pay enough attention to the deeper layers of guitar. The mid-range snarl of the vocals is angry enough, though not the most dynamic element of their sound. There are some melodic slower passages on "Comet" that offers a wider range of color Even these do not really find any wheels being re-invented.
There is a lower tone to the guitar on "Disgust" that conveys more aggression. Tempo-wise it is almost uniform with the pacing of the first two songs. There are aa few hookier riffs, but the rule here is cool riffs alone does not a good song make. It is clear when they slow down and get more deliberate, they tend to be more effective song writers and heavier. The double bass is blazing when it is not the blast beat beats more often than not. The throb of the riff that leads into "Stars My destination" reminds me of Inquisition. Not the first time this month a band has invoked that feeling. Granted they are kind of descendants of Immortal, who are this band's other influence aside from Dissection. At this point in the album heaviness alone is not going to do it for me and I am going to need some more textures and find our if there are any other tricks up these guys sleeves.
"Going into "Last Transmission" at full blast ahead does not do a great deal to win me over. Three and a half minutes into the song it breaks down into a slower more melodic section. It also makes me think the whole sci-fi thing is window dressing to disguise the fact this is pretty straight forward Swedish sounding black metal. The more Watain like vibe to the riff of "Fool's Paradise" regains my interest a little and the thrashing riff on the verses works as well. "Taken" sets its course to more standard modern black metal tempo, these guys just know how to break it up with a cool riff, which I have already shared the rule about that here. There is a slower throb going into the last song. The verse riff follow suit but inject it with something catchier that reminds me of 90s Samael. I will round this down to an 8.5, these guys have potential, but I would like to hear them break away a little more from conventions. Perhaps adding some space to the proceedings.
If you miss the days when Deafheaven was heavy, this French band has you covered in fact they are darker and nastier than Deafheaven ever dared. Where they vary from being just another black gaze band is in the intense militant hammering, they aim upon your ears with a machine-like precision that has almost more in common with Meshuggah. A black metal like atmosphere that breaks up some of the relentless weaponized grooves. The midrange vocals have more a bark to them than the scathing howls of black metal. Not unlike how hard-core screaming is used to a more percussive effect.
The songs are very compact, they do not sprawl out into a droning wasteland like many black metal bands. The hard-core attack is the syncopation with swathes of ambient dissonance creating the feeling of waves crashing against rocks. There is some interesting nuance in the drumming. The technical nature of what is going down is the one component that offsets this being easily defined as black metal. The heaviness gives way to more sonic sprawl that is neatly condensed down into the four and a half minutes that is " (A)". it is an instrumental, but still not only works well, but could serve as a lesson into how to do this sort of thing without it just becoming an interlude.
The machine cranks back up and hit you with the robotic grind of aggression on the next song, giving things enough room to breathe to create a pulse that is a little more along the lines of black metal amid the shifting riffs. The vocals are the one element that works off phrasing rather than tone. In other words, much like Meshuggah it is more about where the vocals fall rather than them changing pitch wise. There is little sonically surprising once we get into the thick of "Elle se.." . The last song starts off firmly planted in the formula of heavy they are working off of and they divert with some post-rock gazing. I will give this a 9 it is a very solid and impressive album that finds this band now having my attention.
