Recommended for fans of: Leviathan, Behexen, Blaze of Perdition
Who knows what day it is today?
That’s right, it’s Synn Report day, and this month I’m turning my attention to all four full-lengths (including their recently-released new album, Black Blood) by the Black Metal sorcerer who goes by the name Abduction.
(Andy Synn saddles up with Bucephale, the first full-length album in 20 years from Nostromo)
Better late than never, that’s what they say, right? Although, come to think of it, it’s mostly people who are chronically late who say that, so maybe they’re just trying to cover for themselves…
Still, in this case it rings true, as while I’m ashamed to admit I totally missed the boat on the first phase of Nostromo‘s career (during which time they produced three impressively intense albums), I’ve been hooked on them ever since I stumbled across their 2019 EP, Narrenschiff, and so felt that the impending release of their new record was the perfect time to make amends for overlooking them for so long.
If, like I used to be, you’re not familiar with the group, then l what you should expect from this album is a truly vicious, visceral assault on your senses (and your sensibilities) that sits somewhere between the more extreme proponents of “Metallic Hardcore” (aka the original “Metalcore”) like Integrity and Vision of Disorder, and the most furiously focussed form(s) of Grind a la Nasum, Napalm Death, etc.
But that’s not all, as – ever since their rebirth a few years back – the group have been exploring ever darker and more “blackened” sounds, with Bucephale being their darkest, harshest, and heaviest album yet.
(Andy Synn is back again with three more examples of home-grown British talent)
These “Best of British” pieces are a lot like buses… you wait ages for one and then two come along (almost) at once!
Does that joke/reference track? I hope so, because the underlying premise – that these articles were intended to be a much more regular thing, but tend to just come along at relatively random intervals – is pretty accurate.
If you haven’t checked out the previous edition of the “Best of British” from last week – where I covered the new albums from Everest Queen, Terra, and Vacuous – you might want to do so now, otherwise I invite you to settle in and get to know the latest offerings from Battalions, Ingested, and Mountainscape.
(Andy Synn enters the House of Falling Ash, the new album from Californian trio Chrome Ghost)
You know how insurance companies calculate that once you’ve been in an accident your chances of being in another accident drastically increase?
Well, the same kind of thinking applies here at NCS too… once we’ve written about a band we’re much more likely to write about them again in the future.
Of course, it doesn’t always work out this way – we don’t always have time to cover everything we want to – but there’s a good chance that, if we liked what you did once, we’re going to be keeping our eyes (and ears) on you for whatever you do next.
Case in point, while I was a few months late to the party with Chrome Ghost‘s second album, The Diving Bell (which you can read more about here), it quickly became a firm favourite of mine due to its unique integration of doomy majesty, ephemeral atmosphere, and rugged, grungy grooves.
So when I saw that the promo for their new album (out this Friday) was up for grabs I knew I had to hear it.
(Andy Synn provides a last minute recommendation of the new album from Glass Ox, set for release tomorrow)
It’s pretty much an open secret that a lot of Metal media outlets still have a bit of a bias against all things ‘core.
Of course, that’s not the case here at NCS, as we definitely cover a fair bit of the ol’ Grind (mostly thanks to DGR) and even a healthy dose of Deathcore too (although, it must be said, most of this year’s “big” releases – you know who I’m talking about – have left me rather cold).
But when it comes to Hardcore… even of the “Metallic” kind… it tends to fall to me to highlight some of the new and notable releases, and I feel like sometimes I’m not doing a good enough job.
That being said, I’ve listened to, and lavished praise, on quite a few Hardcore (or Hardcore-adjacent) bands this year, and I’m hopeful that at least some of you out there will have been enticed to check out a few of the artists/albums I’ve covered so far this year, even if they aren’t necessarily in your usual wheelhouse.
In that spirit then, I’d like to bring to your attention the new album from Iowan trio Glass Ox.
(Andy Synn presents three more meaty morsels of home-grown heaviness from the UK)
I’d like to begin this article with a quick apology to the bands involved – I had every intention of writing about you sooner (especially those of you I’ve written about before) but life… uh… got in the way.
Still, we’re here now, and even though these reviews are coming post-release I hope they bring all of you some new fans (and hopefully some new sales too). You deserve it.
(Andy Synn presents a triptych of terrifying – and terrific – recent releases)
I don’t know about you lot, but I’ve always found dark music to be a great comfort during dark times.
And, since I am going through a bit of a dark patch myself right now I thought it’d be a good time to share some of the music which is helping me through it.
Who knows, you might just discover your new favourite band/album!
(With an introduction by Andy Synn, today we premiere a video of the Montreal band Présages performing the final two tracks on their 2021 debut album Pleurs.)
The debut album from Présages was one of last year’s hidden gems (and you can read more about it here).
By amalgamating elements of Death, Doom, and Post-Metal — aided and abetted by an almost Meshuggah-sized guitar tone — the eight tracks which made up Pleurs left a serious (and seriously heavy) impression on yours truly, and I’m pretty sure at least some of our readers had the same reaction.
It wasn’t just that the Canadian quartet were capable of conjuring such a stunningly dense, almost physically palpable, sense of sheer sonic mass with their music though, it was their ability to pair this level of riff-focussed (and, at key moments, blast-driven) intensity with an equally massive and weighty sense of atmosphere, as well as some subtle, mood-enhancing electronic elements, which helped them stand out from the crowd.
But you don’t have to take my word for it, as the band have asked us to host a “live in the studio” performance of the album’s climactic double-act – “Hiérophanie” and “Pleure” – which together represent the very best that Présages have to offer, and positions them as potential future leaders of the burgeoning “Atmospheric Death Metal” movement, alongside similarly awesome artists like Barús, Nightmarer, and Nero Di Marte. Continue reading »
(Andy Synn catches up with a few gems from last month which you may have overlooked)
September is always a busy time for new releases, and this year was no different.
Sure, they weren’t all good (in fact, I can tell you now, there was at least one major name that is definitely going to end up on my “Disappointing” list, and probably piss quite a few people off in the process) but there were a lot of high quality albums released last month and, even though we tried our best, we barely scratched the surface of what September had to offer this year.
So while I’ve attempted to cover a number of different bases with the four artists/albums I’ve chosen to write about today, I also urge you all to check out some of the records which we weren’t able to find space/time for, including new stuff from Acausal Intrusion, Dead Void, Kathaaria, Maunra, Mo’ynoq, Otus, Wayward Dawn, and Writhing (and many, many more that I’ve probably forgotten about).
(Andy Synn presents his first impressions of the fantastic new album from Thundering Hooves, which is set for release on October 7th by Mercenary Press)
Well, here we are… finally.
I say “finally” because, originally, this premiere/review was meant to go live yesterday, but due to a major behind-the-scenes mix-up (which involved me working with the wrong promo materials entirely… long story) we had to bump it back a day.
But, while this obviously means I haven’t been able to give it the usual in-depth investigation, perhaps we should treat this as something of an opportunity… after all, dear reader, how often is it that you and I get to experience an album for the first time together?
So let’s see what Radiance has to offer, shall we, and compare our notes at the end? Continue reading »