AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: SHINING — “VILJA & DRÖM”

 Premieres  13 Responses »
May 272015
 

 

The video we’re about to premiere from Sweden’s Shining, for the song “Vilja & Dröm” (“Will and Dream”) off their new album IX – Everyone, Everything, Everywhere, Ends, comes with a NSFW warning. Unlike most metal videos branded with that warning, this one doesn’t include salacious scenes of nudity. Instead, it depicts images of true obscenity — actual film footage and photographs of extreme violence inflicted upon the human body.

The video, beautifully filmed and edited by long-time Shining collaborator Martin Strandberg, also includes the band kicking the hell out of this electrifying song in a boiler room. It begins with the burning of “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights”, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1948 — and consistently honored in its breach by the savagery of humankind ever since then. Continue reading »

SHADES OF BLACK: ERRAUNT, DEATHCODE SOCIETY, SODOMA, GNOSIS, DROUTH, and PORTAL AT MDF

 Album Reviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC, SHORT BUT SWEET  7 Responses »
May 272015
 

 

This is a collection of music I discovered over the last few days, most of it recently released. Most of it also wells up from the ichor-filled aquifers of black metal, though as usual for this Shades of Black series, no two of the bands sound alike.

ERRAUNT

Most of the new music included in this collection consists of complete EPs or albums that deserve full reviews, but I’m afraid I may never find the time to write them. Rather than risk saying nothing at all, I at least want to offer some brief descriptions and strong recommendations. This debut by the one-man Chicago band Erraunt falls into that category. Continue reading »

SEEN BUT NOT HEARD: NILE, SOILWORK, DRAGGED INTO SUNLIGHT + GNAW THEIR TONGUES, ANTROPOFAGO

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  6 Responses »
May 272015
 

 

Did you see what I did there? I actually do have a small round-up of new songs coming a bit later today, but this collection of new discoveries mainly consists of interesting announcements — though there is one new live Soilwork video embedded below.

NILE

Nile are finishing up the mixing work on a new album entitled What Should Not Be Unearthed, which Nuclear Blast plans to release in the late summer of this year. Along with that announcement the label revealed the cover art, which I think is quite good and which was created by Michal “Xaay” Loranc. It includes hieroglyphs taken from The Book of the Dead as well as the protective sign of the winged scarab in the center. The concept seems to posit the existence of an ancient elder civilization that pre-dated and gave rise to the old Egyptian civilization.

Along with the announcement and the artwork came this quote from Karl Sanders, which I found particularly enticing (I bold-faced the words of interest): Continue reading »

MDF BLOG BREAK (PART 4)

 Concert Reviews  13 Responses »
May 262015
 


None of these people is me.

I’m seriously considering a legal change of my name to include the words “Ass Backwards” in it. I mean, I’m not fooling anyone anyway, so I might as well be up-front about it.

Case-in-point: Instead of writing a chronologically oriented and comprehensive review of the recently concluded Maryland Deathfest XIII, I just started tossing out random collections of photos over the last three days, mainly as a way of explaining why I wasn’t doing much of anything else for the site. And now, rather than starting over with something that actually looks like a thoughtful report on an amazing event, I’m going to continue with what I started and fill in the gaps I left, working my way backward to the pre-fest show last Wednesday.

Once again, there will be more of my photos in the continuation of this series than my words, which may come as a continuing relief to many. Continue reading »

DEIPHAGO: “RED DRAGON OF CHAOS”

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  5 Responses »
May 262015
 

 

It’s really not fair to all the other bands around the world who have been drenching their arms in the blood pool of black/death. When Deiphago unleash their brand of red dragon chaos, you just have to shake your head. How do you keep up with something like this?

I was lucky to hear this new Deiphago song — “Red Dragon of Chaos” — many weeks ago and I meant to write about it the moment I was free to do so. But when it finally became public I was just beginning my Maryland Deathfest XIII sojourn and missed the news. Better late than never, I hope.

Speaking of MDF, I discovered that Hells Headbangers was selling the new Deiphago album that includes this song at their MDF merch tent, more than two months in advance of its official release. By the time I got my ass in gear and visited the HH installation, only two CD copies were left. And then there were none, though one came home with me to Seattle. And speaking further of MDF, I think enough time has passed since Deiphago’s last appearance there in 2013 that they should be invited to return next year, especially because I didn’t make the trip in 2013. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: DISTANT SUN — “ZERO TO HERO” AND “SHATTERED EMPIRE”

 Premieres  1 Response »
May 262015
 

 

That cover art by W. Smerdulak is still just as awesome as when we posted it the first time. The first time we posted it was a couple of weeks ago when we premiered a song named “Kill the Fremen” from the new album Dark Matter by Russia’s Distant Sun, and today we’re happy to bring you the premiere of two more songs from the new album: “Zero To Hero” and “Shattered Empire“.

If you caught that first song, then you already have a sense of Distant Sun’s knack for fusing elements of speed metal, thrash, and power metal. And if you missed it, you’ll get another introduction right now. “Zero To Hero” is a complete head-rush of immediately infectious jolting riffs, bounding bass lines, and galloping drumwork, with a mix of ragged-edged and clean vocals. Of course, once you dig into the track you know there’s got to be a guitar solo coming — and it’s a blistering one. Continue reading »

VATTNET VISKAR: “SETTLER”

 Album Reviews  4 Responses »
May 262015
 

 

(Wil Cifer reviews the new album by Vattnet Viskar.)

I am glad this album doesn’t sound like its cover. After the first note you are assured that it won’t. If this is black metal it’s a very American take on it. They bring the blasting to an end for “Yearn” as they morph into more of a sludge band. There is even a tinge of melody beneath the rasp of the vocals, which are mid-ranged and overdriven at the mixing board by Sanford Parker. ”Yearn” is woven through some interesting twists and turns, before the point is pounded home and it’s time for heads to bang. This tends to be carried out in a meaner feel than Sky Swallower. Credit goes to the wider dynamic scope allowing the heavy sections to feel heavier, despite the album’s crisp production.

Slamming a blast of well-mixed double bass right into your fucking face, Vattnet Viskar make “Impact” live up to the song’s name. Like any lasting piece of art, more reveals itself when you return to it, like the doubled gang vocals that were hidden til the third listen. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: ULTRATUMBA (LORENZO PARTIDA BRAVO)

 Interviews  1 Response »
May 262015
 

 

(In this post Comrade Aleks interviews Lorenzo Partida Bravo, guitarist of Mexico’s Ultratumba.)

Ultratumba isn’t a new band; they’ve worked in the metal underground since 1995, but it’s rare to find one who knows about this bunch of brutal dudes from Mexico City. It’s strange, because this band under the guidance of talented guitarist Lorenzo Partida Bravo have already released six pretty diverse albums (and one live album).

Their full-length La Casa del Escarabajo (“House of Beetle”) was written in 2010, and it demonstrates very harsh and aggressive death-doom metal with some unusual approaches, while the band’s last work Sopa Envenenada (“Poisoned Soup”) is closer to more traditional doom, yet with pretty wild vocal lines.

Besides that I need to mention that Lorenzo has played in the thrash/death band Transmetal since 1987 and he also has a solo progressive project named simply Lorenzo Partida! Am I talking too much today? Maybe, let’s give a word to Lorenzo. Continue reading »

SHOW REVIEW: ANAAL NATHRAKH, INCITE, SECRETS OF THE SKY, PLAGUE WIDOW

 Concert Reviews  5 Responses »
May 262015
 

 

(DGR prepared this review of a show in Sacramento, California on May 11, 2015.)

I’ve often joked about my living in Sacramento as being an unfortunate situation and something of a curse. Sacramento, which could easily be described as a pretend big city and the world’s largest cow town, often within the same breath, is a city that up until the past three years or so would rarely get many touring acts rolling through town. Most of the time, those tours would hit the big cities (you know, the ones they actually care enough to include on a map of California because stuff happens there, unlike us, who get preferential treatment because we are the capitol) and then quickly jet away from the desolate wastelands of this state.

The local scene has always been vibrant but even now, with a whole bunch of venues in town and multiple concerts that likely would have NEVER rolled through before those venues came to Sacramento, I still find myself surprised. Sometimes, the stars align and we even manage to pull off something incredibly insane — like Anaal Nathrakh coming to podunk-ass Sacramento and playing in a venue the size of a large kitchen. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: DISENTOMB

 Interviews  2 Responses »
May 262015
 

 

(Brutality shall reign: Our old and loyal friend Vonlughlio from the Dominican Republic interviews Henri Sison, the drummer of Disentomb from Australia.) 

I’ve been given the opportunity to conduct an interview with Henri (Drummer) of Disentomb, one of my favorite Brutal Death Metal bands from Australia.  Just last year they released via New Standard Elite their second full-length entitled Misery that was my Top 3 album in my year-end list (you can see the full list here).

This is one band that I can honestly say exactly how I found them: It was in 2011 after the release of their debut album Sunken Chambers of Nephilim. I was drawn first by its artwork, and the music turned out to be just top-notch BDM from start to finish. Continue reading »

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