Coffins : "Sinister Oath"

 

This is the Japanese death metal band's 6th album. I really liked their last full length though, the one that preceded it did not do too much for me. First off, just being from Japan might seem like a novelty when it comes to the genre, but I do not care where you are from I expect every death metal band to bring it as hard as Morbid Angel or Incantation. The way they hit China going into the doomier moments is rawer than your average American death metal band. The album's title track allows this darker side of the band to come through. The album opens with a brief instrumental leaving 'Spontaneous Rot" as the song that has to make the impression on me, and its deliberate grinding groove does that. However, three songs in, and guttural grime seems to be the main color this album is painted with. 

There are two kinds of death metal bands. Once that go for big slick production and then those that just plug in a rough it about like their Combat Records idols. The Motothead-like thrashing of "Chains" opens shows the band's punk influence, letting you know what category these guys fall in. The interesting effects on the vocals in this song, prove they are not against experimenting they just do not want it to take their edge from them/. This is what puts these guys into the second class of death metal bands.  They do change things up to give a melodic drone to the riff that guides "Everlasting Spiral". In the song's final two minutes, they build note worthy momentum. That same momentum seems like it spilled over into "Things Infestation" as I did not realize it had transitioned into a new song. This speaks to the uniformity of sound. It is not until midway into the song that the riff comes to get the job done. Being released on Relapse Records March 29th. 

"Headless Monarch' starts off as a solid headbanger, then it falls prey to the most common misstep taken by many a death metal band and they speed up. They speed up in a manner that makes the song feel rushed in this section. The last song at first seems like it has promise, but hammers you all the filthy chugs you expect from death metal. This is really a matter of perspective as there are some fans who are going to love this face, they do not want the unexpected but want the same safe sounds. These guys execute these sounds effectively, but it feels like they could have taken more chances as songwriters. Yes, even when things break down to the bass line. I will give this album an 8.5, very solid and what their fans want, they should not be disappointed, but when it comes to the replay value for me personally I think they played it a little too safe. 

pst117

the Top 50 Heaviest Albums of All Time : 50 - 41

The idea to make this list came as I was trying to make an apocalypse playlist. These are heavy times and they make me want to listen to the most crushing music I have. Metal is like drugs. What seemed heavy at first no longer does after a time so you have to up your dose of heaviness in order to get the same result. I extended the invitation on social media for people to nominate albums with the caveat that the bar for heaviness these albums needed to surpass was Morbid Angel's "Blessed Are the Sick " album. It's the band's heaviest and while Morbid Angel is one of my favorite death metal bands they are not the most crushing . They are good at what they do. Some of the albums that got nominated did make the cut. There was however a great deal of mention of bands like Mercyful Fate and Black Sabbath, both of whom are among my favorite bands not just metal , but off all time. However this is not a list of my favorite bands. Nor is it s list of the most influential albums . It is a list of the heaviest albums. Ones that are crushing in a way that makes listeners of lesser metal uncomfortable. When you put Black Sabbath up against the albums on this list, while they influenced most if not all of the musicians playing on them Sabbath comes across as just harder edge rock. This is not taking away from Ozzy and the boys that is just how it is.  

When asked how is heavy being defined the best answer I have given is " the density of sound, sonically intense with an malevolent emotional intention behind it" . So just loud and distorted are less than the bare minimum. I need musicians using their instruments to create darkness and torment. Things like playing fast might factor in here and there , but speed alone doesn't make anything heavy. There are tons of fast punk bands that are not heavy. Just tuning low is not heavy, Korn certainly is not on here. There are many different factors that play into each album to earn it's place here and different genres as well with Death Metal, Black Metal , Grind Core and Sludge having the best showing those a few thrash bands and doom bands made the cut . Any ways here are the top 50 heaviest albums of all time.  

50 Morbid Angel- " Blessed are the Sick"

The bands heaviest album, it sounds like they are using their instruments to worship ancient demon gods. The music lives up to the blasphemous declarations of the lyrics. 

49- Starkweather - "Into the Wire" 


Metal mixed with hardcore once worked. These guys are proof. They sound totally unhinged with t the darkness spewed out on this album .  

48- Watain- "Sworn to the Dark"

Black metal can fall into the trap of relying on blast beats , which becomes an atmospheric drone rather than carrying any kind of heft. These guys believe in what they are snarling about which gives an added intention to the spirit of their music. It is most pummeling on this album. 

47-Wayfarer - " World's Blood"

Blending black metal with sludge this band proves you do not have to forsake all semblance of melody in order to be heavy. In fact it is the creepy quality of the guitar melodies that make this heavier. 

46-Godflesh- "Streetcleaner"

This 1989 album has stood the test of time and is just as crushing today as when it come out . 

45- Fister- " No Spirit Within"

These nasty sludge bringers bring a balanced blend of density and darkness with a doomy hopelessness pervading the songs. 

44-Entombed- Left hand Path


In 1990 this album created the template for death metal coming out of Sweden from that point on. With a more jagged guitar one and riffs that hit like hammers.

43-Coffins - "the Fleshland"

Tokyo's death doom warlords destroys your ear drums like a zombie Godzilla on this album. 

 42-Brutal Truth- "Extreme Conditions Demand Extreme Responses"

Helmed by Dan Lilker  from Nuclear Assault when this album came out in 1992 it was on of the heaviest things going at the time . 

41- Today is the Day- " In the Eyes of God"

Vocals can often become an after thought in more extreme forms of metal, this album uses them to create a more deranged narrative that furthers the deranged atmosphere.

the Top 10 Death Metal Albums of 2019

It's that time of year again, to sort through the top 10 albums of all the respective genres, then use them, to compile the top 10 albums of the year. Later in the month I am making  the top 10 lists for the decade, though to be blunt  this is the decade's weakest year for music.  Especially when it comes to new artists,  7 of the 10 bands are veterans.  You had to search much harder to find ten albums that rose above, yet that is what I did. As in  past years I am  giving a brief explanation as to why these albums stand over their peers in lower positions on the list. The very fact these bands made it on the list speaks to how great these albums are so it's not a slight that the number 8 album is above the 9th album, there is something that just gives it an edge that makes me want to listen to it more. After all we can try to look cool and pick the hippest bands for a list, but at the end of the day what makes an album the best is that it makes you want more, you look forward to listening to it again. Sure you can bitch and complain about your favorite band not being on the list. However  I listen to five new albums a day so yes I heard your favorite album and was not impressed. No,  I do not care what you think about it.   I do hope you can find your next favorite on this list  and  have included links to reviews of these albums if you want to check out audio on these guys. Anyways here are the top 10 Death metal   albums of 2019 .

1

10- Cold Colours -" Northernmost" 


 Despite a Swedish tinge to the sound of this Minnesota band, at the end of the day they are more death n roll. his album is really well produced and these guys have a big guitar sound that plays to their strength as a band. Sure there is a large dose of melo-death to what they do , but it's not all guitar harmonies. They throw a few different shades of death metal at you and they all work well together.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/01/cold-colours-northernmost.html

9- Nightfell- "A Sanity Deranged" 

 There is no shortage of grim atmosphere on his album, sometimes they are closer to death doom at other's they are flirting with black metal, but aggression is their stock and trade. The guitars are so mean it's sick and despite all the other shades they throw at you at the bleeding heart of this album it is death metal. They beat out Cold Colours for this spot because these guys are darker.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/08/nightfell-sanity-deranged.html

8-Cloak-"the Burning Dawn"

 This time they are less haunted by Swedish influence and coming int more of their own sound thanks to matured song writing. The guitar tone is more dialed in and some of the chugged riffs are heavier and cooler. This album grew on me and even the vocals became more accepted to my ears. These guys beat out Nightfell due to their melodic nuance.

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/10/gothtober-cloak-burning-dawn.html

7- Nocturnus Ad- "Paradox" 


 Drummer Mike Browning was one of the founding members of Morbid Angel. Is he as good as Pete? No, but he is pretty solid and he sings ..ok, growls on top of playing. "the Key" was one of the best albums of the early days of death metal, while there is not the same level of feral chaos here it has been replaced with more technical savvy , like a death metal version of Coroner. I normally do not like technical death metal, but Browning's matured song writing skills sell it. It is this prowess that puts them over the younger Cloak.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/04/nocturnus-ad-paradox.html

6- October Tide - "In Splendor Below"


 This Swedish band features two members of Katatonia, the Norrman brothers holding down a twin guitar attack for the band's 6th album. It starts off as melodic death metal not far removed from say Bloodbath, sometimes having more in common with earlier Katatonia This album grew on me due to , it's catchy song writing which is more than the bulk of death metal you hear these days. This sense of inherent groove vaulted it over Nocturnus.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/03/october-tide-in-splendor-below.html

5-Nailed to Obscurity- "Black Frost " 


 If you are going to be a death metal band that upon occasion employs cleanly sung vocals do it like these guys as it doesn't sound contrived. It's death metal for a cold rainy day. The mood is what beats out the somewhat similar October Tide.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/01/nailed-to-obscurity-black-frost.html

4- Blood Incantation- "Hidden History of the Human Race"


 At first I thought ok this is another band that wants to be Morbid Angel, and then things began to take some twists and turns. For all it's technical and progressive leanings , the groove is seldom compromised. Rooted in a classic sound while being ambitious enough to strive for more. This willingness to pla y with the formula is what puts them ahead of Nailed to Obscurity.



 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/10/blood-incantation-hidden-history-of.html

3-Creeping Death- "Wretched Illusions"


 They care about writing songs and are steeped in old school death metal. They also give me some fucking grooves that keep my head moving. If I was going to compare them to any old school death metal band it would be Obituary. They have the same nasty slime coming off their riffs. The sheer weight and aggression they attack these songs with gives them the edge over Blood incantation.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/08/creeping-death-wretched-illusions.html

2- Coffins-- "Beyond the Circular Demise"


 This band's sound is it is organic, yet dark and dense. When they lock into a mid paced chug , it is probably their best quality. They do not do it every song , or even every other song, but when you hear it there is no denying this fact. It is heavy as fuck. Not to the point they have thrown the song out the window either. The tighter riffing is what beats out Creeping Death.



 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/09/coffins-beyond-circular-demise.html

1- Pulchra Morte : "Divina Autem et Aniles" t


This album is focused and doesn't get carried away with atmosphere. The vocals seem very intentional and not just an after thought as does the addition of strings that seems to increase the deeper into the album you get .. You would think it would be common sense for the focus to be on the songs rather than just beating you into submission. This album came out earlier in the year so it makes sense, I listened to it more since I had the time to simmer on it. Listened to it more since and there was time to simmer on it.


 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2019/02/pulchra-morte-divina-autem-et-aniles.html

Coffins : "Beyond the Circular Demise"

I was prepared for the filthy grit of this to be a bunch of brutal churning with out anything to hook me in . That is not the case. I should not be surprised as this is their 5th album in 20 years. One every four means they take their time in the studio. The opener is more straight up death metal with punk touches . "The Tranquil End"i s slower paced with a doomy feel for the first half but they speed things back up into death metal. I know there has always been a fleeting flirtation with doom , so these guys are not jumping on the death doom bandwagon, in fact this album is more death metal than I remember their rumble being before. Though I have not really paid a ton of attention to them.They return to this dragging doom sound on " Forgotten Cemetery" it does not stay there for long. They soon speed up into their blown out style of  death metal. The vocals stay at their low grunt.  There are some cool angular touches with guitar lines.

What I like about their sound is it is organic, yet dark and dense. When they lock into a mid paced chug , it is probably their best quality. They do not do it every song , or even every other song, but when you hear it there is no denying this fact. It is heavy as fuck. Not to the point they have thrown the song out the window either. At least on this album they ow a lot to Incantation, though there sound is more condensed than the more spacious dark of Incantation's earlier work. "Hour of Execution" doesn't stray too far from what you know they are good at. Even they are slower this still sounds more like death metal. When the riffs picks up it's a memorable riff. "Insane" has way more groove than I recall these guys having . Some of the more abrasive feed back and fuzz from the guitar sound has been polished back making this a more use friendly effort. 

"Birth Postmortem"  has a heavier grind to it than the previous song , but still carries a great deal of groove. The album closer "Gate ways to Dystopia" has a more rambling sludge like tone dialing in more rock than death metal. Aside from the vocals which have stayed the  same for the entire album. For death metal they can get away with it. The groove shift , but they pretty much find their way back into the kind of death metal this album has found them to now be. I will round this one up to a 9.5 as they have become a lean mean death metal machine./ This comes out September 20th on Relapse Records

Coffins: "Craving to Eternal Slumber"

Any thoughts that I might have had about this band being slow death metal rather than doom is given renewed credence on their new ep. It took a few listens to get over this but the power of their chug and the bass player's embellishments underneath the slugging sludge add more depth. The low vocal roars are complemented by the layers of higher screamy vocals and then into the low-spoken section.  The second song "Tyrant" is more deliberate in its pacing. It doesn't take long however before they head off into a murky speed. It sure the hell is not as interesting as the first song.  The chug doesn't grab you until midway through. The first real doom passage we come across on this album is on the title track. The throat-scarping guttural vocals work their best here and the foreboding prescience that hangs over this song is what doom should sound like, it's not funereal doom, but solidly morbid nonetheless. The more death metal side of the band works when they kick into building heavier dynamics. On the title track, they do this without fully crossing over into death metal, but more of a Godzilla lumber. This is not to stay the more Celtic Frost gone death metal chug they charged in with on the opener was good, it just was not the doom I was looking for. When it sped up past the tempo of the first riff it got a little muddy. While I know Celtic Frost influenced doom, I don't think they were doom, as they came out of the thrash era, but were less thrashy than say Voivod.

When the vocals are hatefully layered it makes the big eminently violent riffs hit harder. They descend back into the unrestrained pound of death metal on "Stairway to Torment", which might as well be an old Cannibal Corpse song. It gets better when it slows down at the midway point and the low spoken narrative comes in like a Slayer song. But as soon as he goes "ugh" they are racing back off. I'll give this ep a 7.5. It's heavy and raw, so if you don't need much more and are already a fan then you are already all over this. If you just want to check them out well you can do so below, it's good, but I am not sure that this is their best work.