December 2023 - Page 6 of 8 - NO CLEAN SINGING

OVERFLOWING STREAMS ON A SATURDAY (TOO MANY BANDS TO NAME)

Dec 092023

Happy Saturday, or whatever other day you’re in when you come across this collection of new music.

I’m taking a lazy way out here — mainly just spewing a bunch of new metal songs and videos at you without much, or any, of the usual commentary. It’s actually not because I’m feeling lazy, it’s because I’m getting crushed by my fucking day job. Sadly (very sadly for me), it’s going to get worse as we approach the end of the year, and even worser in January.

I’ve never given any details about my job, but it’s not 9-5. Some days it might be Noon-3, but other days it might be 5 (a.m.) to midnight, and I have no control over the schedule. Mostly it leaves me plenty of time for NCS. Now, and increasingly until mid-January, it’s going to choke me.

At some point soon I’ll explain what that’s likely to do to some portions of our annual LISTMANIA extravaganza and the usual schedule of daily premieres, but not now. Now I only have time enough to start the spewing of this new stuff I’ve enjoyed, presented in alphabetical order by band name. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: ANDRACCA — “OCEANS OF FIRE”

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Dec 082023

Through their new album To Bare the Weight of Death, which will be released next month by Vendetta Records, the UK black metal band Andracca delve into deep subjects, perhaps the most profound and challenging subjects that confront, or eventually will confront, all of us.

The album’s title itself points to its themes — the experiences of grief and despair caused by death, and in this case, the acceptance of mortality, a reconciliation with death that can be life-affirming. Inspired by the band’s own personal experiences and struggles with loss, the album is intended to manifest “a unification of life and death”, “a triumph of resilience and will, inviting listeners to embrace their own lives with renewed vigor”.

Obviously, these subjects are emotionally powerful, ranging from extreme trauma to struggle, and ultimately to endurance, acceptance, and maybe something even more valuable. They are subjects that call music of equal emotional power.

Did Andracca succeed? You’re about to get the beginning of an answer through our premiere of a video for the song “Oceans of Fire“. Continue reading »

2023 – A YEAR IN REVIEW(S): THE EPs

LISTMANIA 2023 9 Responses »

Dec 082023

(Andy Synn begins his annual week-long retrospective of the year a little early with a round-up of EPs and short-form releases)

One thing which occurred to me while putting together this list is that I have been extremely remiss in covering EPs this year.

Which is a shame, because a good EP… a really good EP… can be a wonderful thing, allowing bands to explore fresh ideas, or simply consolidate their very best material, in a more focussed and tightly-written format.

So here’s an early taste of my yearly round-up (which, let me make very clear, is in no way comprehensive and contains some notable omissions of things which, sadly, I just didn’t get around to hearing), including links to all the EPs, splits, and other assorted short-form releases I’ve listened to over the last twelve months, finishing up with my “personal” Top Ten of the year!

AN NCS PREMIERE: SAEVUS FINIS — “AEONS OF SPIRITUAL STARVATION”

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Dec 072023

Seemingly out of nowhere the Portuguese band Saevus Finis has appeared, with a debut album named Facilis Descensus Averno that’s set for release on January 12th by Transcending Obscurity Records.

For the very few of you who don’t keep a Latin dictionary close to hand, Saevus Finis means “the savage end” and Facilis Descensus Averno means “descent to hell”. Entirely fitting, those words, because the Saevus Finis rendition of death metal on their debut is indeed savage and hellish — punishingly heavy and unnerving in the extreme, a musical fashioning of destructive ruination, sheer madness, and harrowing agonies that makes a startling impression.

As tangible proof of these opinions, today we’re presenting the third song from the album to be revealed so far. Continue reading »

BEER & LOATHING IN THE ROCKIES: DECIBEL METAL AND BEER FEST DENVER, 2023, DAY 1

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Dec 072023

(Denver-based NCS writer Gonzo didn’t miss the Decibel Metal & Beer Fest in Denver on December 1st and 2nd, and somehow he recovered quickly enough to turn in the following report on the fest’s first day — and he’ll be sending us a report on the second day as well.)

We all know the story with sequels – they rarely live up to the expectations set by their predecessor. The trend is so common that it makes one wonder why it’s seemingly always the case. Heavy lies the crown of precedent, I suppose.

Music festivals are not immune to this trend. The first go-round of any festival could easily be a trial-and-error situation resulting in way more “error” for most people’s liking. The logistics, planning, promotion, marketing, and everything that goes in between is a waking nightmare to comprehend, and it’s a hell of a lot easier for me to sit here and write about it than it is to organize and execute. When it’s done right, though, people will come back for Year 2, and they’ll bring their high expectations with them.

All that being said, after spending this past weekend at Summit Music Hall here in Denver for the second incarnation of Decibel’s now-annual Metal & Beer Fest, I can happily say that the curse of sequel mediocrity does not fucking apply here.

If anything, the bar has been thoroughly raised for this glorious weekend of revelry and ear-splitting savagery, even though my liver is scowling in disapproval as I type this. (Sit this one out, you whiny little mass of meat. You’ve suffered enough.) Continue reading »

CRUST – DISSOLUTION

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Dec 072023

(Dissolution comes out on December 15 via Avantgarde Music, and Andy Synn tells you all about it)

It’s undeniable that Crust have been on fire for the last few years, with albums like 2020’s Stoic and 2021’s Wanderers gaining the band more coverage and praise than ever before (including from this site) and introducing even more ears to the band’s signature brand of doom-laden, sludge-laced Black Metal.

And now, with the upcoming release of Dissolution (out next Friday) it looks like they’re set to go three-for-three with what might just be their best work yet.

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: STAGES OF DECOMPOSITION — “SKID ROW SLASHER”

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Dec 062023

The decomposition of organic matter proceeds in stages. In humans, the process includes the body’s own chemical actions and putrefaction as well as the work of bacteria and, in the right settings, the feeding of worms, maggots, flies, and other creatures. But what must precede the increasingly disgusting stages of decomposition is… death.

With that learning in mind, it’s no accident that the brutal slamming L.A. death/grind band Stages of Decomposition chose that name for the music they intended to make, and have made — which is gutting, gruesome, and foul. But they are also clearly aware that death must precede rot and bodily ruination, and so their music is also ruthlessly lethal.

On their new album Raptures of Psychopathy, Stages of Decomposition lean into the most violent and punishing aspects of their sound, and we have a prime example in the new album track we’re presenting today, along with a blood-spraying video, in advance of the record’s February release by Gore House Productions. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: RESIN TOMB — “PURGE FLUID”

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Dec 062023

When we see the name Resin Tomb the first words that come to mind, based on the previous releases of these Australians, are “bombardment”, “fragmentation”, and “incineration” — music used as weaponry — followed by thoughts of “agony” and “mental breakdown”. “Hellish terrors” is another phrase we’ve used in descriptions of their previous noise.

Of course, most surface-dwellers would recoil from anything so-described. In our case, it just makes us eager for more — and more is what we will have when Transcending Obscurity Records releases this harrowing band’s debut album Cerebral Purgatory next month, to help usher in the New Year with ruination.

So far, two tracks from the new album have surfaced (“detonated” is probably a better word), and today we’ve got a third one for you, one that is indeed destructive but one that also brings shivering chills. Its name is “Purge Fluid“. Continue reading »

THINGS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED (BUT SHOULDN’T)

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Dec 062023

(Before he gets into his yearly retrospective Andy Synn wants to highlight four more albums from last month which you may not have heard)

Well, here it is, my last “Things You May Have Missed” column of the year, featuring four albums from November that I think you should all check out if you haven’t already.

That’s it. That’s the intro.

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): ATERRIMA — “A NAME ENGRAVED IN COLD SOIL”

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Dec 052023

Near the end of this past summer we had the pleasure of premiering (and reviewing at length) a fantastic new album named For the Good of the Realm by the Idaho metal band Weald and Woe, whose medieval-inspired music brought to mind the likes of Obsequiae, Véhémence, Darkenhöld, Immortal, and Ensiferum.

Two of the members of Weald and Woe (Brent Ruddy and Isiah Fletcher) are also members (along with Ted Clements) of a very different band named Aterrima, and they too will be releasing an album this year — in just a few days — via the same Fiadh Productions that helped usher For the Good of the Realm into the world.

Aterrima‘s first full-length is entitled A Name Engraved in Cold Soil, and we have a full stream of it for you today. Continue reading »

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