Andy Synn, Author at NO CLEAN SINGING

Andy Synn

THE SYNN REPORT (PART 138): REDEMPTUS

Sep 302021

Recommended for fans of: Isis, Sumac, Old Man Gloom

The central thesis of this site has always been to primarily focus our attention and efforts on the underdogs, the underrated, and the underappreciated of the Metal scene.

Of course, exactly who qualifies for this is somewhat debatable, especially when it comes to the regular retrospective provided by The Synn Report, where we’re just as likely to go to bat for a “big” name whose work we think has been undervalued or unfairly maligned as we are for a relatively unknown band whose merits have gone unsung for far too long.

Today’s edition definitely leans more towards the latter than the former, as while Portuguese trio Redemptus aren’t an entirely unknown quantity, they’ve definitely been dwelling below the radar for far too long in my/our opinion, and it’s high time that more people were made aware of the group’s abrasively aggressive and asphyxiatingly atmospheric blend of sludgy Hardcore and punky Post-Metal.

SHORT BUT SWEET: ASHEN / THE CIRCLE / CULT BURIAL / ENSLAVED / GIANT OF THE MOUNTAIN / MALADIE / TEITAN / TRIBAL GAZE

SHORT BUT SWEET 2 Responses »

Sep 272021

(Andy Synn takes some time out of his busy schedule to celebrate some short but sweet releases by a variety of big names and new faces)

One unfortunate result of the endless scramble to stay on top of the relentless torrent of new album releases is that the humble EP often gets a little overlooked.

Which, obviously, is a real shame, because a good EP can often be just as fulfilling as an album in its own way, especially when a band uses it as an opportunity to explore a different side of themselves or to create something that works within the constraints of the format to tell a complete and fully realised story.

So while I’m working on a number of different full-length reviews (as well as the next edition of The Synn Report) I thought I might as well take a few moments to jot down a few quick reviews for some of the EPs I’ve enjoyed the most over the course of the year so far.

THE BEST OF BRITISH – LVCIFYRE / MASTIFF / SUGAR HORSE

Album Reviews 3 Responses »

Sep 232021

(Andy Synn would like to remind you that while his country may be regressing, their music scene definitely isn’t)

In case you haven’t been keeping up with the news, the good ol’ UK is currently, well… fucked… especially when it comes to international relations and trade with other countries.

Thankfully, however, our homegrown music scene is as strong as it’s ever been, which is why I’m here today to recommend three recent releases which are well worth importing into your ears.

And I won’t even charge you anything for the privilege.

SEND MORE PARAMEDICS – THE FINAL FEAST

Album Reviews 1 Response »

Sep 202021

(Please stand by for an emergency message from Andy Synn)

Attention! Atención! Achtung! This is not a drill.

The dead have risen and are voting Republican feeding on the flesh of the living.

The only way to stop them is to sever the head or destroy the brain.

I repeat: sever the head or destroy the brain.

Evidence shows that the virus spreads through direct contact with the afflicted, but there have also been reports of individuals becoming infected due to exposure to toxic gas, contaminated language, and the new album from Send More Paramedics.

So whatever you do, please, avoid all contact with this album.

RIVERS OF NIHIL – THE WORK

Album Reviews 13 Responses »

Sep 152021

(Andy Synn sits down to do “the work” with the new album from Rivers of Nihil, scheduled for release on September 24)

There’s a certain type of person – hell, for all I know it may just be the same individual over and over again – who responds to any article about Rivers of Nihil with the cut-and-paste comment “Death Metal’s Pink Floyd!”.

And while I can appreciate their enthusiasm (to a point) not only is it getting a bit tiresome (and also suggests that the commenter(s) in question don’t really know much about Pink Floyd) but it totally misunderstands what the band are trying to do.

Because the Pennsylvania quintet aren’t trying to be “Death Metal’s Pink Floyd”, or even “Death Metal’s King Crimson” (which would, arguably, be slightly more accurate, though still not right).

They’re just trying to be Rivers of Nihil. And each and every album they create is another opportunity for them to further define, refine, and redefine, exactly what that means.

EMPLOYED TO SERVE – CONQUERING

Album Reviews No Responses »

Sep 132021

(Andy Synn has followed the UK’s Employed to Serve through thick and thin over the years, so we knew he was the only choice to take on their upcoming new album, Conquering, set for release this Friday)

There’s a certain misconception that Metal/Hardcore fans don’t actually like it when the bands they love become successful.

And while I can understand where this misapprehension came from (there’s definitely a small but obnoxious cadre of loudmouths out there who act like this) the truth, as always, is much more nuanced.

It’s not that we don’t like bands becoming successful… it’s just that we’re tired of bands changing their identity, dumbing own their intelligence, and – yes, I’ll say it – selling out, in order to fit into whatever mass-produced, pre-packaged mould that the mainstream seems to think denotes “success”.

The caveat to this, of course, is that when a band manages to be successful on their own terms, doing what they want to do, rather than what others think they should do, we often love them even more, because they’ve shown that you don’t have to give up who you are in order to be make it “big”.

And, let me tell you now, Employed to Serve are exactly that sort of band, and while their new album looks set to raise their profile to a whole new level, they don’t seem to have had to sacrifice one iota of their intensity or integrity – or their core identity – in order to get there.

THINGS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED (BUT SHOULDN’T)

Album Reviews 7 Responses »

Sep 092021

(Andy Synn would like to remind you – albeit a little later than usual – about a quartet of albums from last month he thinks you really should check out)

Is it just me, or was August just ridiculously busy?

Well, to be honest, I know it’s not just me, as I’ve seen/heard/read a lot of other people saying the same thing. And it doesn’t look like September is going to be any more laid-back (it’s only nine-days in and I feel like I’m already two weeks behind).

It doesn’t help, obviously, that I’ve been pretty damn busy myself over the last few weeks (as I’m sure some of you know), meaning that this edition of “Things You May Have Missed” is coming out much later than usual.

Still, its lateness doesn’t lessen the quality of the albums included by any means, which this month features three killer cuts from the blackened/deathly/dissonant end of the spectrum (at least one of which I’m sure will be a brand new name to most of you) along with one much proggier and much more well-known act whose latest album should, hopefully, bring some of their more wayward fans back into the fold.

So, without wasting any more time… let’s begin, shall we?

CHROME WAVES – THE RAIN WILL CLEANSE

Album Reviews, Exceptions to the Rule 6 Responses »

Sep 082021

(Andy Synn presents another fully justified exception to our usual rules in the form of the exceptional new album from Pittsburgh’s Chrome Waves)

It is always fascinating, often a little bit thrilling, and even occasionally slightly fulfilling, to watch a band achieving its true/final form.

This is not, in any way, an attempt to downplay the quality or value of said band’s previous work – which, in this case, includes an extremely solid debut in A Grief Observed and an even better (and emotionally deeper) second album in last year’s Where We Live, along with a couple of shorter, but equally intriguing, releases along the way – but an acknowledgement that growth, be it physical, emotional, or musical is an ongoing process whose end point we don’t always know in advance.

Case in point, even the most casual listener, on their first run through The Rain Will Cleanse, the third album in as many years from prolific “Post-Black Metal” group Chrome Waves, will quickly realise that the band have pretty much abandoned… or, perhaps it’s better to say, grown out of… their more blackened influences (the only real remnant being the scattered shrieks strewn here and there throughout cathartic closer “Aspiring Death”) in favour of a sound that favours the more emotive and expansive, Post-Rock, Post-Punk, and Shoegaze-inspired side of their identity.

It’s still recognisably the same band, yes, but is also just as clearly the next step, the next necessary step, in their ongoing evolution.

Call it the beginning of their post “Post-Black Metal” phase.

THE SYNN REPORT (PART 137): FLUISTERAARS

THE SYNN REPORT 3 Responses »

Aug 312021

Recommended for fans of: Drudkh, Wolves In The Throne Room, Negură Bunget

While never as (in)famous or flush with accolades and acclaim as their more well-known peers (several of whom I’ve mentioned just above) Netherlands nomads Fluisteraars (“Whisperers”) are very much the connoisseur’s choice when it comes to atmospheric, naturalistic Black Metal which puts a premium on both mood and melody, yet doesn’t skimp on raw energy or riveting intensity in the process.

After producing two albums of immersive atmosphere and brooding fury in quick succession, the group reined in their activities for several years – producing just a short, two-track EP and a lengthy, single-track contribution to a split with Turia in this time – before blooming (pun intended) in their full glory once more with last year’s exceptional Bloem (easily one of the best albums of 2020).

Now operating as a duo, rather than a trio, but still clearly brimming with ideas and momentum, the band have wasted no time capitalising on the excitement and interest generated by their “comeback” (not that they ever entirely went away) and recently released their fourth album, Gegrepen door de Geest der Zielsontluiking, whose stark, simplistic artwork suggests a return to their roots might just be in the cards… but you’ll have to read the rest of the article to find out if that’s true or not.

NIGHTMARER – MONOLITH OF CORROSION

RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC No Responses »

Aug 262021

(Andy Synn takes some time out of his busy schedule to lavish praise on the new EP from Nightmarer, out tomorrow via Total Dissonance Worship)

I must admit, I was late to the party with Nightmarer.

I totally missed their first EP, Chasm, and didn’t get a chance to check out their first album, Cacophony of Terror, until well after practically everyone else in the world had long-since done so (and moved on).

So I told myself that, given the chance, I wasn’t going to make the same mistake again… and although I almost ran out of time (this EP actually comes out tomorrow, so we’re down to the wire here) I’m glad that I kept my promise, even if only by the skin of my teeth, as Monolith of Corrosion is easily the band’s best work yet.

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