Terzij de Horde : "Our Breath Is Not Ours Alone"

 

I don't review many straight-up in-your-face black metal albums that are just old school second wave blasting, but this came recommended. There is more of a chilling, droning atmosphere to the buzz of the opening track, where the second song grinds into a more aggressive buzz that is more feral in nature. They do shift from this into more deliberate accents and some dissonant chord phrashing to make things sonically heavy and chaotic, so the arrangement takes enough turns and is more intricate than the opening track, which is not where I thought it was going. 

I appreciate the bleak density of " A Hammer to the Great Matter of Birth and Death." It hangs on the droning tremolo-picked guitars, but opens up to create more ambiance rather than just riding a static tension; the fact that the drummer knows when to back off helps them with the overall dynamics. They seem to lock into a more relentless shimmer of chords on " The All-Consuming Work of the Soul's Foreclosing." This becomes more of a solid wall of sound with some punches buried within the din, but not enough to create hooks, until they thrash into a more syncopated section to provide some contrast.

They do slow back down to a more deliberate throb with "Justice is Not Enough..." The vocals are exclaimed in a little more of a hardcore cadence at first. The last song moves more likea hard-core song, and the accent of the vocals brings this out, with the cascading guitar lines the only black metal element, though there are layers of guitar to make this a big part of their sound. It does buzz back to life after a spoken work part with the vocals phrashing, reminding me of Deafheaven, the way it sits against the guitars. Overall, I like what they are doing here I will give this an 8.5. 

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Ter Ziele : "Embodiment of Death"

 

This band from the Netherlands brings plenty of sonic anguish on their debut album. The first song carries a gut-pounding throb that snarls with a more wretched sludge feel. They show their more melodic side on the third track with a melodic guitar opening the over 12-minute track as the vocals drop down to more of a mid-range rasp. They recapture the tortured intensity of the first song with a slower, more deliberate build, which tells me they are interested in dynamics and actually writing songs rather than just attacking my eardrums. You can almsot make out the lyrics on this one. It builds into a more furious black metal mood.

Then things drop way down with "This Mortal Coil," which simmers before kicking into a proper song. But when it does, there is a great deal of intention set in the powerful punches that ring out. The drums create more of a groove here, but the guitar allows atmosphere to build more organically. The vocals scowl with a great deal of venom, but I do not judge a sound by vocals alone. 

The album closer "As, Long as I Breathe, I am to Suffer" comes to life with a more doom-tinged lumber. Sludge is in the Doom family, so this makes sense. In fact, I have always thought of it as what happens when punks try to play doom. I think punk is in the family tree of black metal, so that makes sense as well. Blackened sludge would be a fair description if we were going to fit these guys into a sub-genre. Things break down to a rumble of a bass line. They build it up from there with the screamed vocal going even further into throat-shredding agony. I will give this album a 9, as I enjoyed the mood they created and writhes with their emotions in a manner I can believe. 

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Carach Angren : "The Cult of Kariba"

This band from the Netherlands is picking up where the golden years of Cradle of Filth left off. Carach Angren's symphony elements carry the blackened musicals that unfold in their manner of storytelling, which has been streamlined over the years from a more animated flair of dramatics into what unfolds on their new EP. The use of gothic piano parts and romantic strings weaves the fairy tales as they bring them to life in the studio. The drums hammer everything into place under the snarled narrative. Their vocals are not annoying like Dani Filth as he scowls more than shrieks, and his vocal lines have a defined purpose before the grandiose bakc drop of sound. 

The story is more pronounced in a King Diamond fashion on the second song. There is some harsher blasting driving this song that finds the balance between black metal and their brand of darkly theatrical metal. At times when the sung vocals are some of it, I am reminded of Emperor. "ik Kom..." carries a more brooding tribal take on the foreboding tale. It is not black metal, but falls into its own unique shadow-filled palace, as there are traditional folk elements, before the distorted guitars surface. 666

"Venomous 1666" hits with some pretty intense thrashing that is still dressed up to tell the tale at hand. It makes me think that a more Nordic version of these songs is very taunt and effective; they do not let all the special effects used to capture the feel of the subject matter distract them.I will give this album a 9, I appreciate the streamlined approach, but feel there is a great deal of personal quirks that got trimmed here that make these guys stand out from the pack on previous releases, but they are still ahead of what most black metal bands have done so far this year. This is being released on Season of Mist.  

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Graceless : "Icons of Ruin"

 

The fourth album by this melodic death metal band from the Netherlands captures the groove and hooky songwriting that brought death to the mainstream in the 90s. There is a darker undercurrent running through the mood that seems to be steeped in making anthems that are at least against religion. Are they Satanic? Well, in that sense, but I am always hesitant to consider a band Satanic unless they come out and claim their infernal allegiance, as most of the time it's just obligatory heavy metal nonsense. "Sanctified Slaughter" is very deliberate in its chug and takes an almost death-doom pace.

The vocals maintain a lower death metal rasp, with the drummer maintaining tight restraint to prevent the songs from feeling rushed. This allows the music to serve the riffs' groove more effectively. At times, they do speed into more of a tremolo-picked buzz, but it reminds me more of early Unleashed. "Lash Me to My Painful Death" seems to be about a necromance. It is the first song that really marks the more melodic direction the album takes. The riff is pretty creepy. As far as newer bands that are making this brand of classic death metal, Frozen Soul is the only band that comes to mind, though the new NITE album has more of a classic metal feel, and it is this album's main competition this year. But the grooves are next level on "Night of the Slain."  

"Hardening of the Heart" has more emotion conveyed in the vocals while the guitars sit back to set the stage. "Ungodliness" almost sounds just like "Domination" era Morbid Angel on the verses, but the eerie chords that ring out give these guys more of their own identity. "Rise of the Blackest Sun" spins off of this vibe and takes it in a more Entombed-like direction. To the band's credit, the songs all have their own identity, and there has not been much of a chance to lose track in a blur of brutal sound as everything is done with such deliberate intention. This is also an apt description of the kind of powerful chug applied to " A King in the Filth" that has a more Slayer-like riff that comes in to get the pit started. 

There is a more melancholy melody moving " Beneath Starless Skies"; this serves as another example of what makes this band work so well as they invoke a wider scope of emotional weight than just anger and aggression, which tend to give death metal a one-dimensional sonic hue. The last song finds them conforming more closely to what their expectations of death metal are. I will give this album a 9.5, it's one of the year's best death metal releases for sure, let's see how it grows on me. 

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Black Metal History Month - Noctambulist: "Noctambulist II: De Droom"

 

This band's last album was the number-one Black Metal album of 2021.  This means expectations are high for them. They prove on the opening track they have more than enough weapons in their arsenal now to take these expectations on head first. Not shying from taking apart the conventions of black metal to re-shape them to their own liking, there is a brighter more organic sound to the guitars. "Arderlater" is a departure from black carrying an indie rock jangle that gets shifted towards the coming explosion of snarling dynamics. It almost feels more like screamo than black metal. This still works for me as I appreciate their ability to jerk themselves away from conventions. 

This album was written with the entire band fleshing out ideas, so that carries over in this more organic flowing sound. "Godvormig Gat" gets caught up in the kind of stormy blast beats that mark most Black Metal bands. It does make it a little darker than the previous songs. The guitar tones leading into "Lichteter" almost sound more like the Smiths. This makes the cascading shimmer of the guitar that follows it have more in common with "Sunbather' era Deafheaven than not. They continue to use brighter cleaner guitar tones on "Gevoelsmens". More melancholy does creep into this one, as the blasting tempest consumes all sounds surrounding it, and the vocals fall deeper into the mix. The triumphant halftime section touches on themes more common in black-gaze. 

The drumming on this album is impressive. The overall sound is less unique than what I recall from the last album, but in some ways, they have clearly grown as songwriters, as things flow in a very natural way, with post-rock sections seeming like the logical progression rather than a jarring shift. "Vinex" is a very bright blasting that gives way to more melodic chords to ring from it. They take this song in some really interesting places that make me alright without it having to be as dark and depressing as what I normally want from black metal. Things get more serious on the last song finds the album climaxing to a place with greater menace. It does get brighter and overall this album does not sound like these guys are from the Netherlands, this is music I have gotten accustomed to hearing from California, but they are still very effective at what they are doing. I will give this one a 9, meaning it comes close to measuring up to their last album which I also gave a 9 when I first reviewed but by the end of 2021 thought of it as a 9.5, so this album could grow on me as well. 

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Labasheeda : "Blueprints"

Here is the Abyss there is a never-ending influx of albums submitted for me to review, but there are only so many hours in the day for me to listen to music, so a band has to have either garnered enough buzz for me to see if the hype is warranted or they have to stand out enough for me to take interest. This band from the Netherlands stood out. This album came out in November, so I am just now catching up. They play a quirky style of garage rock with a great deal of charm in it's jangle. They are not however the raw basic three-chord style that you commonly associate with garage rock, there is a sonic heft to the jangle of guitars that sets them on the more indie rock side of post-punk. More post, less punk. On a song like "Closure," this leads to a moodiness that runs as a simmering undercurrent beneath the song. 

They come closer to the punk side of the equation with the palm-muted tension of 'Sparkle".  They meander slightly on the thoughtful "Homeless", but it proves to still be an effective song in terms of its overall ebb and flow.  Lead singer Saskia's voice stands out as she is just herself when she steps up to the mic. This is refreshing as so many singers these days are merely emulating someone else. There is a melancholy apathy to her voice that reminds me 90s alternative rock at times, but there is not a particular singer you can say she draws inspiration from. I like where she goes with her voice on the breather "Vanity". 

"Minus Minus" highlights another one of this band's strengths, which is never writing two songs that are alike. Saskia's voice grounds them to sound like who they are , but at times there is a more jarring angular twitch to the groove, at others, things flow more languidly with more varied instrumentation being employed. They might be as dark as what I normally listen to, but things shift in that direction for "Procedure" which might be my favorite song on the album. A similar urgency also haunts "Tigre Royal" though midway into the song things the drums gain momentum. The album closes with the more folky musings of "What Remains is Love". 

This album caught me by surprise and I found myself drawn into more than I expected, when the violin or viola is brought out things get really interesting, but even in their most raw form , this band delivers off-kilter often angular songs with a great deal of thought and heart invested in them. I will give this album a 9, and recommend it to readers who like indie rock with experimental quirk or post-punk that is organic and colors the songs with more than just shades of gray. This is worth a listen for sure.  

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Death is June - Phlebotomized : "Clouds of Confusion"

 

The band from the Netherlands is interesting as in some way they conform to the conform to the status quo of death metal, and in other ways they deviate. The low growled vocals being the most solidifying element bonding them to being a death metal band. They are not huge on hitting you with a ton of speed which I can appreciate.  Not to say they are devoid of speed as they step on the gas when it comes to "Destined to be Killed" which despite the odd angular bits hanging from the edges is the most straight forward death metal moment so far. They bring enough groove to hook me in, and do not try to hammer you with obnoxiously abrasive elements. 

They hit with harder syncopation on "Pillar of Fire". With three guitarists in the band there is never a shortage of guitar harmonies or solos. Both synths and clean vocals are used very tastefully here and avoid the tropes of both. The synths at times do create a feel of more symphonic grandiosity that can be felt heavier midway into the album. This is also about the same time you need to have at least an appreciation for guitar solos as they begin to become more plentiful. Not at the sake of using the song as bookends for them, but more solo than the average death metal band that might focus more on brutality. I appreciate their melodic sense that keeps them from falling in that trap. 

"A Unity Your Messiah Pre-Claimed" starts off with a more deliberate groove that is more effective than when they take things to hyper-brisk thrashing. The last two songs finds them falling into more of a technical middle of the road sound that the synths do little to help them steer clear of, there are few cool riffs in the last song in particular but they begin to fade into the background here. I will give this album an 8 if you want death metal with symphonic and progressive leanings then this album is worth your time. 

Heidevolk : "WederKeer"

The Dutch metal band's 7th album finds some lineup changes in place with Mat van Baest added as a lead guitarist, along with Awakening Sun Drummer Kevin van den Heiligenberg. Former Conorach vocalist Jacco de Wijs taking returns for his second album with the band. This makes the bass player the only original member. Their third album is my favorite, and it feels like this album is going to follow a similar path of applying traditional metal values and almost power metal like hooks to the epic odes to Vikings. Being that they are south of the Baltic, I am not going to call them Viking metal as that is a term reserved for Scandinavian bands, no matter who liberal scholars might seek to revise history for their narrative. I appreciate where they are coming from and the Germanic myths seem to be sung with sincerity, so this is not total LARPing. 

The more deliberate gallops combined with the bold layers of vocals give them a very Tyr like sound. They have more of a black metal influence and are not afraid to use harsher vocals and blast beats. They are not afraid to use cleaner guitar tones. The traditional metal sound factors into the riff that drives the second song, which I appreciate the dynamic balance. More time was put into the recording as this sounds like their more polished outing to date. They continue to defend the face as the album progresses even as they work in the more Renn Faire like folk sounds. I fully support the kinds of chugs they are attacking the mainland with here. Four songs in when they start going back to their old ways, seems a little less inspired in the song writing department. Nothing that is a deal breaker, it just plays it a little safe. This is remedied on "Oeros" which crunches in with a deliberate menace that is darker. 

The title track is more of folk ballad with a mournful feel. They are good at capturing the feel of the Middle Ages with little frolicking involved. They couple this with epic metal from the glory days of the genre with vocals sung in a similar folk cadence as the previous song. There is some introspective ebb and flow that works really well here. They continue to rally the head banging on "Raidho". The pace picks up in a manner that feels like most of the 90s power metal. The folk elements reach a crossroads with what these guys with varied measures of ethereal brooding as the album progresses. "Holda" stands amid this as one of the sole metal moments of the album's third act. The vocals are brighter as the music reaches more epic heights. The album ends with another rousing folk ditty, that sounds like a tavern of depressed bards lamenting together. I will give this album a 9.5, it has taken what they do and perfected it while doing metal proud by sticking to the truest form. Being released on Napalm Records 

November is Doom -Thammuz :' Sons of the Occult"

 

The more I dig into the state of stoner rock this month, I am finding that value is not placed on vocals as much as it once was. These guys are from the Netherlands, so it is not just an American thing. The first two songs kind of run together so it is not until the guitar backs off a little going into "Gauyota" that they really gain my full attention. More nuance to the vocals rather than just sounding like they are a cab driver from New York, might make a difference. They are very capable of doing some interesting, blues-based things, that offer melody and chops without relying on shredding noodling solos. 

The hushed tension to "Has Blast' really works well and assembles darker sound that I love. The vocals are more hushed to work with the music. The fact they are capable of that at least gives me hope. The loud to soft, contract expand shift works well, though feels somewhat 90s in execution, which is fine with me. The creepy serial killer vibes to the shuffle of "Self-taught man " is another winner Songs about serial killers are always winners with me. We also get necrophilia which is another winner for me. The get heavier as the song climaxes.

They really bulldoze you with distortion on "Death Songs". It is metal in the same way Motorhead is metal. Less punk, but just as driving, backing off into the blues shuffle for the vocal on the verses. They groove a little more on "People from the Sky".  We have both aliens and serials killers on the same album. When they locked into a more Tool like riff, I wonder if Tool is the influence of the kind of slither Kyuss has been the direction they are going in. There is even more of a grunge feel to "Peyote" . It is a two-and-a-half-minute instrumental that manages to still be interesting though I would like to have heard it worked into one of the actual songs. There is a shift to a more introspective tension again on "Insomnia" though it does build into banging out more of a booming fuzzed out riff. I will give this one a 9, sure the vocals could be better, but the lyrics are interesting, and it has it's own flair. 

An Autumn For Crippled : " All Fell Silent, Everything Went Quiet "

Long time readers will know I have been a pretty big supporter of this band since the beginning. Even as they grew away from black metal. They have still stayed true to creating an anonymous shroud of secrecy around them and have yet to play live. This marks the band's first album for Prosthetic Records. I would not say they are fully embracing their black metal past on the first song, but it is one of the more aggressive moments we have heard from them as of late. This is one band who you can not say are jumping on the black gaze Deafheaven band wagon, if anything along with Weakling these guys might have influenced Deafheaven. The second song finds them relenting in more of a up tempo shoe gazing thing. They experiment with some new tones and are defiantly moving away from the more post-rock direction and into a more driven sound. Two songs in and I am pleased can they keep the momentum.

The answer comes in the third song . Not exactly. If it wasn't for the screamed vocals it could be indie rock. Think Hum here. "Paths" find the vocals which sit pretty far back into the guitars, cutting through more. The synths also come forward in the mix more. The sonic density goes along way with me and balances out the fact that this album is not as dark as their earlier work. They used to be more  of a depressive black metal band. "Silver' keeps the pace up while using melodic layers of atmosphere to juxtapose it. Symphonic synths create a odd break down where the bass still rumbles. "None More Pale" moves at a more post-punk pace. Flowing tension, but very melodic. The song stays in motion. This creates the illusion of a black metal band when they are not playing black metal, which is a feat to be applauded in and of itself.

The title track goes a little more melancholy at first then falls in line with what they have been doing for the rest of the album. The album begins to fall into the kinda of sonic blur that many black metal bands do. "Craving Silence" makes a solid argument that these guys have returned to black metal. I think in attitude they have. The last song doesn't do much to set itself apart from the rest of the album. I will give this a 9 for showing more teeth than they have in some time and finding their way back to a place that at least leads towards black metal. This album comes out May 1st.

Dool : " Summerland"

I was a big fan of their previous album. If you were unaware this band features members of the Devils Blood. They are less retro and more progressive, with a more straight up radio rock vibe. Some of this is thanks to the very accessible nature of the smooth vocals. The post punk vibe the was only a vague coloring that darkened the first album is more prominent here."Wolf Moon" has a marginally more up tempo groove. The drumming is more intricate here, reminding me a little of Alice In Chains mood wise. Until the chorus which has more of a 70s rock meets doom feel. There is more of a brooding hard rock offered on "God Particle". Her voice has more husk to it's alto creating a more androgynous tone than last time. The arrangements are also more finely tuned with subtle creeping break downs  and bridges.

There is a more simmering feel to the more power ballad like title track. They album stays moody, but as I was working on another article it began to lose my ear and fade into background music. "the Wells Run Dry" does a good job of modernizing the old formula of occult rock. "Ode To the Future" has a more PJ Harvey like strum to it. "Be Your Sins" carries more of a rock swagger to the riff. This is one of the more overt metal moments , though not the heaviest. The palm muted chug that runs as an undercurrent through the verses has a classic metal influence for sure. This fills the void left by In Solitude. I think this album mood wise has more of a doom feel. "Dust & Shadow" might be one of the strongest songs on the album it balances the dark creepy feel with jamming out rock god style with guitar solos.

There is a faint hint of the 60s feel that occult rock leans toward when it pulls influence from bands like Coven . This is jarringly contrasted by the last song "the Ascent to Summerland" that is very atmospheric and experimental almost not a tangible songs.I will give this album a 9.5, I think it's a mature step forward with songwriting and even darker .

Black Metal History Month - Funeral Winds - "Sinister Creed"

Now the question that will be asked of all black metal bands this month is ...what are you doing differently? The raw jagged guitar thick band from the Netherlands attacks you with might be aggressive enough, but begs the question what else can you do? Can you write an actual song, is certainly a concern. They have been doing this since 1991 so I hope they have written a few real songs since then. The opener breaks down into a slower more epic metal moment, before speeding up. It sounds like they are obviously rooted in thrash and punk.Since 91 they have only released four full length albums so it is hard to imagine they have playing music seriously since that point. Another fact to take into consideration is how black metal has changed since then. They thrash out with a little tighter focus on the second song. It reminds me of Watain's more fast and furious moments, one would assume they were an influence upon Watain. When they lock into the more thrashing headbangs this band is at their full powers.

"the Arrival" has a more animalistic intent in it's snarl.The title track is not far removed from this either. It's at this point that I become curious as to what these guys sounded like on their first album. This is fitting to get into this history of this band since after all it is Black Metal History month. They has more of a thrashing sound like Posssessed. It seems closer to death metal than black metal. The vocals are still raspy in a very black metal way, but in 98 the second wave of black metal was well under way and "Storm of the Light's Bane" which most people will cite as Watain's primary influence was already out. I don't think it's totally insane to wonder if perhaps the roles might have been reversed and these guys thought "Hmm Watain is certainly selling some albums, we have been doing that kind of shit for a while now, lets tweak somethings in the studio and bring out that fact. "Blood" is another fiery feral speed fest.

The get my attention back on "Black Moon Over Saturn"  there is something that feels more death metal in the chug to this song. They blast back more aggressively on "Seven Arrows Knife and Flame". I little past the midway point it shifts into a slower more confident riff.  At seven and a half minutes the final song is the longest which is not uncommon. The vocals have more of a croak to them. It starts off as a blast fest so the slower croak of the vocals helps to balance it out. This delivery also helps the lyrics to stand out. this album is pretty solid for what it is I'll give it an 8, though not sure how much mileage I'll personally get out of it.

Pestilence - "Hadeon"

Bassist / vocalist Patrick Mameli is carrying the torch for this band that dates all the way back to 1986. Even with all of the new blood this takes you back to the early days of death metal when it met at the intersection of thrash. The riffs wind around themselves, the snarl of the vocals is the only thing that keeps this anchored in death metal on a song like "Manifestations". Mameli obviously takes most of the song writing credit here as the tightly palm muted guitar takes you back to the golden years of bands like Bolt Thrower and Sepultura. The bulk of the technical death metal bands pretty much owe the bulk of their careers to these guys who were doing this kind of thing before Death went into this direction. The experience is certainly felt in the song writing which balances keeping the uncompromising  aggression with catchy riffs .

Four songs in and I am pretty fucking impressed. I mean if you have been doing this shit since 1986, then you should be skilled, I think the catch is being able to keep the flame going for this kind of metal. Another way the old school metal breeding of this project wins out is the fact that the songs are all under five minutes. They manage to cover a ton of ground in this time frame even including weird angular robotic interludes on "Astral Projection". The atmosphere added to the songs keeps things interesting, they prove they can shred as needed. "Dis-incarnate Entity" goes into a riff with an almost Morbid Angel like groove. Keeping with the 80's there is a great thrash like bass tone that brings bands like Anthrax and Overkill to mind in the way the pick attacks the strings. The riffs are taunt and in the pocket to make it hard not to head bang to. This is where they get it right and modern tech-death fails.

"Ultra-Demons" is pretty straight forward and aggressive with the production on the vocals making the difference. The robotic effects return. The guitar solos have enough flash and class to make them work and the more proggy time changes work and don't lose the momentum. They don't lose me when the pace picks up which is where many bands fall off. I think they have written songs that hooked me in more than "Layers of Reality". They use a similar rushed speed on "Electro Magnetic" that employs sparse blast beats as accents. Overall this album won me over and if this is any indication 2018 might be a good year for death metal I'll round this up to a 9. This album comes out March 5th.

Catching Up With 2017 - Dool : "Here Now, There Then"

This came out way back in February. It features the former drummer and bassist from the Devils Blood, so why no buzz? Not really trying to replicate the sound of the Devils Blood. The ten minute opener is certainly less retro. It also feels a little darker and their singer has more of a modern rock radio friendly voice. The guitars don't sound like they are running through Orange Amps and have a more effected tone. The first seven minutes go by pretty fast. So the longer song length is not a deal breaker as I am not staring at the clock.

There is more of the Blue Oyster Cult thing resurrected in the opening chords of "Golden Serpents" but it's smoothed out until the more proto-doom like chorus. This song doesn't feel as impassioned as the opener, but better than your average filler."Words On Paper" they return to something that has their own unique shade of darkness to it. "In Her Darkest Hour" is a tighter , tenser and catchier . song.  Though more up-beat and closer to radio rock "Oweynagat" is also smartly written and numbered among this albums best songs as the bass does most of the work. Has a retro 80' pop feel with very modern in how the vocals are layer. The twin guitar melodies to add more of a metal twist, so this song has almost too much going on to define.

"the Alpha" finds the album beginning to smoothly cruise into a formula of smooth hooky atmospheric rock that is only broken up by the ambiance of "the Death of Love" that applies more progressive touches and works of more of an expand and retract formula. When the guitar solo offering a more rock dynamic to creep in. They are well out side of the bounds of any retro leanings here and defining their own identity here. "She-goat" returns to the smoother formula of "the Alpha" though the drums are more deliberate and it has a little more punch. I would not call this album metal, though it has doom influence to it. Solid album that carries the torch of the Devil's Blood in a much different way than expected, I'll give it a 9.


 

Catching Up With 2017 Ulsect : "s/t"

This band from the Netherland's released their debut album back in May. It features members of Textures and Dodecahedron. They employ some interesting angular riffs to contrast some of the atmospheric sections. You can hear hints of hardcore in how the vocals are barked rather than committing to a full on guttural growl. There is no question the darkness they dig into has a range of dynamics.There are some "oh shit moments" when I realize I am on the next song already. The black metal influence peeks out on the second song as well. But this album is more fully committed to being death metal. "Diminish" just works off of what this band has already established they do , just with the bass coming up in the mix. "Moire" is a deeper dive into dark with it's deliberate march. Though it almost serves more as an intro for " Unveil" than being a song in and of it's self . "Unveil" is a more dynamic moment for this album with the melodic break approaching the song's midway point. But going into the blast beat at the end is a little predictable.

"An Augury"  is another instrumental that works off a slower tempo, though it feels more like an idea for a song than an actual song that goes somewhere. Songs tell stories even if they are instrumental. Every story has a beginning , middle and end, so for a song to not have these it is falling short of the story it should be telling. That is why the rule around here has been "cool riffs alone do not make a good song" the riffs are the words that tell this story and one good word is not a story. If you are thinking that is too much to ask from music than go back to sniffing glue. "the Ending" is another dense slab of death metal. The chugged accents play to the band strengths. The growls at this point in the record begin to feel like a one trick pony. While this is a defining quality of death metal it can become tedious.

The album closes with the six and a half minute "Maunder" . It tells the story I spoke of earlier. It starts off slower casting a sonic shadow. It begins to build the vocals have a more spoken quality before going into the roars and screams. Still at the mid way point they are using restraint and not getting carried away by the need for speed, which would feel like they are taking the easy way out. The riffs are creepy . Still compensating for the lack of melody in the vocals which at this point are just a texture. Rather than racing away with you they allow the song to dissolve into atmospheric noise proving they know how to tell a story without relying on the typical death metal plot devices. I'll give this album a 8 while it falls into some of the genres limitations it rises to the occasion more often than not.

Asphyx : "Incoming Death"

This Dutch death metal band released their first full length in 1991 and have been storming the gates with their very manic take on the genre ever since. Their lead growler did some time in Pestilence, which gives them an edge over being just another death metal band from the 90s. There is more of dry snarling rasp to his weathered voice.  He is also the sole long standing member of the band. These guys are upholding a legacy of a band that hailed from  an era where writing songs came before just being heavy. For the first two song that certainly does the trick for me though I begin to wonder what else can they do?  They do a pretty good job of recreating the feeling of 90's death metal. By the time we get to the third song some of the charm is wearing off of this.

There is a great deal of energy thrusting the riffs of "the Feeder" in your face. They lyrics seem to be about some kind of sci-fi parasite. There is an almost Obituary like gurgle to Martin's tortured vocals chords. 'It Came From the Skies" describes the horror of cosmic rays with a very Slayer influence riff coming out of the verse. This song is compact and catchy , which is a winning combination for these guys. There is a more doom like deliberation to "the Grand Denial" which also makes it one of this album's most convincing songs. They even take this song out with a clean guitar section. Thy go back to raging  on the title track. There is a bigger gallop to "Forerunners of the Apocalypse" which you can check out below. They get darker on " Subterra Incognita". Unlike Auroch whose album I also reviewed today these guys have the needed restraint to not ruin a good thing with un-needed blast of speed and ride the shadow waves of this more brooding beast. They do build the song, but just don't bust into blasting haphazardly.

They do speed up into a more rabid thrashing, but one with a solid groove to it on "Wildland Fire" it reminds me of some of Obituary's more uptempo moments and allows their drummer to show off his double bass. Here the do cut loose more and let their acceleration carry them way in a few places. They same one of the best songs for last in closing with "Death the Only Immortal". It has one of the meanest bass tones I have heard in some time. I'll give this album an 8.5. It has some strong moments and shows great maturation as a band due to it's restraint. When it comes to death metal this might not not always be dark enough for me. If you like straight up no frills death metal from the 90s then this is your jam go ahead a round it up.



Century Media is releasing this album September 30th.

An Autumn For Crippled Children : "Eternal"

This band from the Netherlands keeps pumping out on a yearly basis. This time they are releasing it in lp format. the first song isn't bad and finds them doing what they do, but nothing jumps put at me, like it does on the second song which recaptures my attention. The third song brings in even more of a melodic element and shows they have been doing what Deafheaven does way before the fact. However it feels a little like Black Sabbath's "Cross Purposes" album where even though grunge would not exist without Iommi, the vocals were all in the minor third harmonies Alice In Chains used at the time. If that comparison is too much for you to get what is going on here, then you are a lost cause and should go back to sleep.

The bass and drums are totally on it from "On Fire " on. The guitar has a weird fuzzed out tone for most of the album up to this point it makes them sound almost like a synth. When the real synths come in then things get really weird and confuzzing. The vocals cry out in the same rasp they normally do. Though it's become less expansive in it's range of tortured cries and like older Deafheaven sticks to a mid range that is mixed back into the guitars.  "You Have Been in the Shadows" finds the vocals much angrier than the music around them. The post rock thing is not as obvious as it has been on other releases, yet there is no way any one in their right mind can think of these guys as a black metal band any more.

"Days of Sleep" floats on towards sightly darker clouds and a more melancholy mood. These are the best guitar melodies so far on this album. The drums sound more like they are programmed on this song, but it isn't a deal breaker. There is a lighter tone to the ambiance coating the drive of "Swallowed By Night's Despair"  The melody to "Cloud Mood" is more compelling even though it pushes them further into the more shoe gaze side. The album closes by finding the band in their more classic sonic space. I'll give this album a 7.5, it strikes me as playing it safe and almost bland. It would be nice if they got back to being a little darker like their early stuff, I could except them no longer being a black metal band if this was this case. I have accepted this for the past few albums, it's just finding them at a place where they need to rethink their direction before it leads them into stagnation. This album comes out October 17th.

Gold : "No Image" album review & "Servant" video

This band from the Netherlands features one of the guitarists from the Devil's Blood,which peaked my interest as I am curious as to what became of the surviving members of that band. The first song the band comes across like a darker version of Mew.The vocals are so androgynous that is was not until the second song that I was sure the singer was a woman . Not metal they do rock pretty hard at times they even create a dark pounding that creates the kind of drone that can be found on earlier Swans albums to compliment when singer Milena Eva is chanting like a more crazed version of Jarboe. When they step on the gas it reminds me a little of the Devil's Blood."Old Habits" carried more of a rock stomp to it."O.D.I.R" takes a similar stomp and drones over it before launching into a more punk like attack. Her melody has more of a Debbie Harry touch to it, which is a welcome departure from the legions of Siouxsie clones.


 Things continue to get darker on "Shapeless"finds the guitar taking a darker pulse, but the band heading in a more hooky and straight forward direction, which in this case works. Her voice wraps itself around the song like the hypnotizing snake from the "Jungle Book"."Tar and Feather" finds her vocals maintains an alluring quality while the rest of the band hits a more straight forward punk rock sound with noisy edges and angular turns. The are almost like a harsher version of Garbage here. "the Controller" drones on a static guitar line which is picked in a similar fashion to some black metal. The song kicks into something with more form in a pretty explosive fashion. Things speed up on the punk fueled "the Waves" that find all of the elements coming together almost more like a metal band, so some of the guitarists past catches up with him here.

"And I Know" pretty much has every element I need from this type of music. It's sonic, dark and has a dream like quality to it. It has a swaying groove that her melody falls over perfectly. There is an Apocalypse rising in the tension of "Don't". Vocally she backs off a little and sits back into the boiling riff.They close out the album with an oddly straight forward proto-punk drone of "Taste Me". This albums sounds great some of the more punk leaning moments do not always sit best with me, but overall these guys have something unique going and I am curious as to where they will go from here. I'll give it an 8.5.