SEEN AND HEARD (PART 2): INTEGRITY, KOLLAPSE, NECROHERESY, BARBARIAN, PORTRAYAL OF GUILT

 Album Reviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  3 Responses »
May 182017
 

 

Part 1 of this late-week round-up can be found here. I’m still not finished throwing recommendations your way, but Part 3 will have to wait until tomorrow. They’re closing the door on my airplane now.

INTEGRITY

Yesterday Integrity released an official video for “I Am The Spell“, a track off their new (12th) album Howling, For The Nightmare Shall Consume, which is described as “a conceptual foretelling of the final days of Armageddon”. It will be released by Relapse on July 14th. The lyrics tell you a lot about the sound of this new track: Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): SOULSKINNER — “DESCENT TO ABADDON”

 Album Reviews, Premieres  2 Responses »
May 172017
 

 

Soulskinner is a Greek death metal band with a storied history, one that stretches back to 1997 when the band was formed under the name Terra Tenebrae. Although line-up changes have occurred, the band is still anchored by vocalist Gothmog and guitarist Bill Zobolas (“EL“), both of whom have also been fixtures in the ranks of Thou Art Lord, and for their new fourth album they’re joined by drummer Kostas Savvidis, guitarist Spyros Triantafyllou, and bassist Costas Analytis.

That new fourth album is Descent To Abaddon, and in advance of its May 22nd release by Xtreem Music, we have a stream of the entire album for your enjoyment. Continue reading »

THE BEST OF BRITISH, 2017 (PART 4): BELIAL / DREKAVAC / MONOLITHIAN

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  No Responses »
May 172017
 

 

(Andy Synn once again focuses on recent or forthcoming releases by bands from his native land, this time selecting releases by Belial, Drekavac, and Monolithian.)

Breaking with convention ever so slightly, this edition of “The Best of British” is focussed on EPs, rather than albums, providing you with a hand-picked triptych of short, but oh-so-sweet, metallic morsels to devour at your leisure.

BELIAL – NIHIL EST

Punishing Deathcore with a pronounced Technical edge, the sophomore EP by these Swindon-based savages is a crushing conglomeration of coiled riffs, convulsive rhythms, and cascading electronics — plus the occasional bone-shattering breakdown – that should appeal to anyone who considers themselves a fan of All Shall Perish, Fit For An Autopsy, and their ilk. Continue reading »

MOONLOOP: “DEVOCEAN”

 Album Reviews  4 Responses »
May 162017
 

 

(TheMadIsraeli wrote this review of the new album by the Spanish band Moonloop, released in March.)

Moonloop are one of those bands whose existence feels like a justification for the underground metal scene. I’m not talking about underground in the mainstream sense, of course — not the Suffocation’s or the Immolation’s of the world — but the really obscure “you have to be a sad sap who does nothing but scour the Internet for cool album art and weird-sounding band names to judge your listening off of” sort of underground.

We’ve sorta mentioned Moonloop on this site once or twice back in 2012 courtesy of posts Islander made, but we haven’t ever given these guys their due and just coverage, and their newest record Devocean, which came out back in March, is as good a place as any to start. Continue reading »

LOSS: “HORIZONLESS”

 Album Reviews  1 Response »
May 162017
 

 

(Wil Cifer wrote this review of the new album by Loss, which will be released by Profound Lore on May 19.)

The Tennessee mongers of funereal doom have returned with a long-awaited album. This one has been years coming, and the growth made since their first album is evident. While some things have changed, the core of what you might have liked on Despond is present, but the production is much fuller and shows they have gone the extra mile to expand their sound.

I personally came across this band when they were opening for Agalloch and was struck by the clean guitar tone that uttered out such sad phrasing. Those sounds are intact but the tones sometimes shift into something heavier, yet they still retain the sonic properties. Continue reading »

LOATHFINDER: “THE GREAT TIRED ONES”

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  1 Response »
May 152017
 

 

(Andy Synn reviews the debut EP by the Polish band Loathfinder, released near the end of April by Godz Ov War Productions.)

Never underestimate the power of some eye-catching artwork… I mean, just look at that cover art… the rotten, roughly-sketched lines, the gritty, granular colour-scheme, the subtle suggestion of oozing, necrotic motion… how can you not want to find out more when confronted with an image like that? Continue reading »

CONCERT REVIEW: WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM AND WIEGEDOOD — LIVE IN BOLOGNA, ITALY (MAY 4, 2017)

 Concert Reviews  No Responses »
May 122017
 

 

(Music journalist Konstantin, who in past years has written for Serbia’s Nocturne Music Magazine, and who brought us a 2-part interview earlier this week, now provides these impressions of the recent performance by Wolves In the Throne Room and Wiegedood in Bologna, Italy, as part of the bands’ Beltrane 2017 European Tour.)

It was more than six years since the last Wolves in the Throne Room concert in Italy when the band announced their long-awaited European tour. The last couple of years saw brothers Nathan and Aaron Weaver focusing on things outside their music and releasing only one instrumental/ambient album, so the return to Europe was highly anticipated.

The tour quickly gained attention, resulting in several dates being sold out, as was the case with the gig in Bologna on the 4th of May. After an outstanding performance at Roadburn Festival, dates around Europe followed, so the concert in Bologna was one of the last on this tour. As was the case with previous concerts, support came from Wiegedood, a Belgian band who share members with  Oathbreaker and AmenRa. Continue reading »

AN NCS EP PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): AMIENSUS — “ALL PATHS LEAD TO DEATH”

 Album Reviews, Premieres, SHORT BUT SWEET  4 Responses »
May 122017
 

 

Last fall, Minnesota’s Amiensus signed with Apathia Records for the release of a new EP this spring, and the release of that EP is now fast approaching. Its name is All Paths Lead To Death, and the release date is May 19th. We’ve previously written about the first two singles from the EP, and now we’ve got the good fortune to bring you a stream of the EP in its entirety.

We’re told by the band that “the concept of the album revolves around Hell and different depictions as well”, which ties to the John Martin artwork used on the cover, depicting Satan reigning on his throne in the hall of the Pandæmonium. And the music ties to that concept as well. Continue reading »

THE BEST OF BRITISH, 2017 (PART 3): CRAVEN IDOL / SYNAPTIK / TELEPATHY

 Album Reviews  No Responses »
May 122017
 


Craven Idol

 

(Andy Synn focuses once again on a trio of recent or forthcoming releases by UK bands, this time selecting material from Craven Idol, Synaptik, and Telepathy.)

What a veritable smorgasbord of metallic delights I have here for your delectation. Though, with the joys of Brexit coming up, I suppose I won’t be able to use words like “smorgasbord” for much longer, lest I be declared a traitor to the crown…

Anyway, putting the politics and pontificating to one side, here are three stellar slabs of UK Metal for you all to savour – the throat-ripping Black/Thrash of Craven Idol, the epic and extravagant Prog-Metal of Synaptik, and the intricate instrumental storytelling of Telepathy. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): WHITE WARD — “FUTILITY REPORT”

 Album Reviews, Premieres  2 Responses »
May 122017
 

 

Futility Report is brilliant in a way that few albums are in any year. As much as anything else, it’s brilliant because in its vaulting inventiveness and unexpected juxtapositions it could have been a train wreck, mangled bodies strewn about like broken toys, and fractured machines burning in a jumble of warped iron and splattered diesel. Instead, like mad scientists who are in fact visionaries, White Ward have produced something through their freakish gene-splicing of genre families that’s utterly mesmerizing.

We’ve had the pleasure of premiering two songs from Futility Report already, and I could hardly be happier that we’ve been asked now to premiere a full stream of this remarkable album on the date of its release. Continue reading »

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