Reviews Archives - Page 363 of 601

KRALLICE: “PRELAPSARIAN”

Dec 232016

(Andy Synn has pounced with alacrity upon the just-released Prelapsarian by Krallice and prepared this timely review.)

Oh you poor, deluded fools… did you really think we were done with reviews, simply because we’re currently mired in the depths of Listmania? And did you really think that I was done writing, just because my week-long list-stravaganza, was finally done?

Perish the thought.

In truth I’d actually intended to get more writing done this week, but I ended up being busy practically all day (and all night) Tuesday, and somewhat hungover on Wednesday… so this is my first real chance to sit down and get my brain back into gear. Worry not though, as I have at least one more review, and this month’s edition of The Synn Report, planned for next week.

But, in the meantime, let’s cast our eyes (and ears) over Prelapsarian, the latest dose of extravantgarde extremity from the ever-prolific Krallice. Continue reading »

BRUTAL UNREST: “TRINITAS”

Album Reviews 1 Response »

Dec 202016

(TheMadIsraeli prepared this review of the new album by Germany’s Brutal Unrest, coming in January from Hammerheart Records.)

I don’t demand originality or diversity of sound when it comes to my metal. All I ever ask of you is that if you aren’t going to do something interesting or experimental, write good riffs, show that you have a fundamental understanding of what makes metal great. And so I tend to like only super-out-there experimental/avant-garde/progressive extreme metal, or super-meat-and-potatoes, tried-and-true metal that pays homage to the roots and legacy of the genre.

Brutal Unrest definitely fall into the latter category, a majestic German death metal behemoth that listened to too much Aeon, Deicide, Suffocation, and Dismember and came out sounding exactly like the above album cover looks. Continue reading »

MYSTICUM: “PLANET SATAN”

Album Reviews 5 Responses »

Dec 202016

(We welcome back guest writer Lonegoat, the Texas-based necroclassical pianist behind Goatcraft, whose latest album Yersinia Pestis was released earlier this year by I, Voidhanger. In this piece, Lonegoat provides a different kind of review for the latest album by the Norwegian band Mysticum.)

Synopsis: Mysticum goes on a raging binge, warps to Planet Satan, dies.

Slowly and unwillingly, Mysticum recovered consciousness. He lay on his back, eyes tightly closed, trying to postpone the inevitable awakening. But conciousness returned and brought sensation with it. Needles of pain stabbed at his eyeballs, and the base of his skull began to pound like a giant heart. His joints seemed to be on fire, and his stomach was a deep well of nausea. It was no relief for him to realize that he was suffering from the absolute embodiment of all hangovers. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): CRYPT OF SILENCE — “AWARENESS EPHEMERA”

Album Reviews, Premieres 2 Responses »

Dec 192016

The deepening of winter in the northern latitudes provides an auspicious setting for the release of one of the year’s most staggeringly powerful doom/death albums, Awareness Ephemera, by the Ukrainian band Crypt of Silence. It is being released today by the prominent Russian doom label Solitude Productions, and to commemorate the release we’re bringing you a full stream of its four immense songs.

This is Crypt of Silence’s second album, following 2014’s Beyond Shades, and it is far and away their most accomplished release to date. It draws inspiration from the early albums of such esteemed progenitors as Mourning Beloveth and My Dying Bride, creating a listening experience that is emotionally wrenching and stunningly heavy. Bodies are being broken upon the rack, and hearts have broken as well. Continue reading »

SHADES OF BLACK (PART 2): GRAVATUS, APOGNOSIS, ASH AND COAL, DARK PORTRAIT, ZAKAZ, TOTENWELT

Album Reviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC, SHADES OF BLACK 7 Responses »

Dec 182016

I’ve managed to complete the second part of a two-part post that I began earlier today, though it’s not as complete as I had hoped. This second installment includes five full albums or EPs, all of which deserve more words of praise than I have time to give them, but once the new week begins I’ll have even less time than I do today. And so I’ve decided it’s better to make relatively brief exclamations of excitement than none at all.

In addition to those five full releases, this post includes one new advance track. It’s only barely in the usual blackened vein of this series (if at all), but I like it so much that I’ve bent the rules.

GRAVATUS

We begin with a new album named LI_E by the one-man Romanian project Gravatus, which was released on November 12. This was my first exposure to the music of Gravatus, but I’ve found myself enthralled by LI_E. Continue reading »

SUNLIGHT’S BANE: “TBVLATEWB”

Album Reviews 4 Responses »

Dec 162016

(TheMadIsraeli reviews the forthcoming debut album by Sunlight’s Bane from southeastern Michigan.)

Sunlight’s Bane is the sort of pure vitriol I need in my life. TBVLATEWB (also known as “The Blackest Volume: Like All The Earth Was Buried”) is both an unrelenting powerhouse of feral ferocity and carnage and also an interesting exercise in sub-genre hybridization which, as you may know, is my fucking shit.

An interesting combination of death metal, black metal, hardcore, and grindcore, this album accomplishes a grim and unrelentingly belligerent attack that sticks out from the pack. If you like bands like Anaal Nathrakh, Nails, Dark Fortress, Portal, and/or Incantation I think this album will speak to you inevitably on some visceral level. I’m quite a fan of what this band are doing, and very glad I gave it a shot when I got the promo. Continue reading »

BENEATH THE NCS RADAR — PART 19 (OVER THE TOP YEAR-END EDITION)

Album Reviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 19 Responses »

Dec 162016

( The end of the year approaches, and to commemorate the death of 2016 our Norwegian friend Gorger has prepared a gargantuan installment of his series highlighting releases that we have overlooked. To find more of his discoveries, type “Gorger” in our search bar or visit Gorger’s Metal.)

LISTMANIA is well under way. I still have some 2016 releases that deserve a mentioning at least. And that’s what I intend to do. Inspired by Islander’s overflowing-streams I’ll settle for a short conclusion of my own initial write ups. It’s not going to be easy, as I just don’t know when to shut my mouth. You probably got better things to do with your life than listen to me jabber, chatter, and preach all day anyway.

During December, I’ll probably gather enough material for a 20th round of this here series. When such a post will be published, is still up in the smoggy air. Continue reading »

AN NCS EP PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): UR — “HAIL DEATH”

Album Reviews, Premieres, SHORT BUT SWEET 2 Responses »

Dec 152016

I listen to a lot of new black metal every week. As most serious metal lovers are well aware, the genre has become remarkably diverse, so much so that I’d venture to say that it now encompasses more variety than any of the other well-recognized genres of extreme music — which is one reason I listen to a lot of black metal every week. Some branchings of this immense, gnarled, and thorny tree have gone off in experimental directions; others have twisted back down into the roots, intertwining with them to the point that the new growth is indistinguishable from the old.

The debut EP Hail Death by the Polish black metal band UR isn’t experimental, or mind-bendingly intricate. It honors certain aspects of the genre’s roots, yet it’s also not a re-tread of the dominant forms of the second wave. But among all the varied branchings of black metal that I’ve explored this year, it has proven to be one of the most enjoyable. I’ll explain why — but I wouldn’t blame you if you chose to skip past my verbiage immediately and jump straight to the player at the end of this post, where you can launch a full stream of the EP in advance of its December 15 release by Arachophobia Records. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD (PART 2): EMPTINESS, HYPERDONTIA, ZOLOA, WIZARD UNION

Album Reviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC, SHORT BUT SWEET 3 Responses »

Dec 122016

As the title says, this is the second part of a round-up of new music I thought was worth sharing to begin this week. As often happens, in between posting Part 1 and this Part 2 I came across some more new songs I thought were very good, and I’ve added one of them at the beginning of this post.

As explained in Part 1, this particular Seen and Heard includes more minutes of new music than usual because of the presence of numerous full EPs — three of which are to be found below.

EMPTINESS

This morning brought the premiere of yet another track from the new album by Belgium’s Emptiness. I’ve enjoyed all of them so far, but I think this one is my favorite. Continue reading »

CALL OF THE VOID: “AYFKM” (A REVIEW AND THE PREMIERE OF A SPECIAL VIDEO TRAILER)

Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET 3 Responses »

Dec 092016

This post is divided into three parts. It includes a review of the new EP, AYFKM, by Colorado’s Call of the Void, which will be released by Translation Loss on December 16. You’ll also find a brief interview of the band that offers some insights into the music, the EP’s title, and the cover art.

But first, I’d like to ask you to watch the following video trailer for the EP, which we’re debuting here. I’m going to stifle my usual tendency to give away the game and spoil surprises. I think after you see it, and hear it, you’ll be even more interested in the other two parts of this post — or at least you’ll want to hear more music from the EP. I can help you with that, too. Continue reading »

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