NO CLEAN SINGING

FESTIVITIES: MIGRATION FEST 2016

Jan 262016

Today brought an official announcement I’ve been waiting on for months, ever since hearing early hints that it would be happening: Two of America’s best underground labels — Gilead Media and 20 Buck Spin — are collaborating to present a metal festival on August 12-14, 2016, in Olympia, Washington — the first (and we hope not the last) Migration Fest.

The initial line-up of confirmed bands announced today is, in a word, fantastic. It primarily showcases bands from each label’s roster, but also includes “other affiliated and respected artists, highlighting the distinct and contrasting styles that makes each label stand out”. Check this out:

Auroch
The Body & Krieg collaborative performance
Christian Mistress
Dead To A Dying World
False
Fórn
Full Of Hell
Khemmis Continue reading »

BENEATH THE NCS RADAR (PART 7)

Album Reviews 4 Responses »

Jan 262016

(Our Norwegian friend Gorger is back with another installment in his series recommending releases that we’ve managed to overlook. And be sure to check out Gorger’s Metal.)

I was rather surprised to learn that neither Diavolos nor Saligia has surfaced on the Nautical Crest Sea, but hey, that’s my cue to drag them out of the waters and bring them in from the cold. By coincidence, another Norwegian act will also be brought ashore.

They might brake this site’s moniker (thumb’ish) rule at times, but they absolutely deserve more attention and a larger audience, and considering the diversity in taste amongst NCS readers, I feel certain someone will embrace them. Finally, a few beached frozen Italian birds tag along.

With Death, Thrash, and Black metal, elements of Doom and Pagan, a few time travelers going off to the ’80s for inspiration, and something remotely resembling uniqueness^* here and there, this is another assorted four-course meal. I hope you enjoy at least a few of them.

^*Considering Islander’s comment on misuse of the word uniqueness, I better choose my words carefully. But on the other hand, every single snowflake is unique! Then again, they all look like fucking snow to me! (Also, one can never be sure that an album is really unique, as long as one hasn’t heard every single album released, that is, but no worries, folks, I’m working on it!) Continue reading »

BRUTALITY: “SEA OF IGNORANCE”

Album Reviews 5 Responses »

Jan 262016

(Grant Skelton reviews the new album by the resurrected Brutality.)

Is it just me, or do you ever feel like you enjoy your metal in absentia? The best tours never pass through your city (and perhaps not even your state). Or you discover a new band only to find out they play just 30 shows a year and you’d have to cross an ocean to catch them live. Indeed, the worst possibility is hearing an album, buying said album, then heading over to Encyclopaedia Metallum to get more information on the band. Then, your eyes widen. Your mouth is agape with terror as you behold the 2 most foreboding words in all of metaldom…”split up.”

This was me when I discovered Brutality in recent years. Along with my zeal for the Bay Area thrash scene of the early ’80s, I’ve made no attempt to hide my similar interest in ’90s Florida death. The digital age affords us the capability to hear music from previous aeons of metal history. We can watch interviews and concerts (in all their archaic VHS glory). For some obscene amount of money, we might even find a so-rare-it’s-still-throbbing copy of a band’s demo cassette on eBay. But none of that can replace being part of a scene. Buying CDs and tapes, handing out show flyers. Actually witnessing local bands play for dirt cheap (or nothing at all) just so that they can get their music heard. Continue reading »

MORE NEW MUSIC: ROTTING CHRIST, HIGH PRIEST OF SATURN, KOZELJNIK, HANDS OF DESPAIR

Exceptions to the Rule, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 9 Responses »

Jan 262016

Sometimes I worry that we bombard you so heavily with new music that it might become exhausting, or just unrealistic to follow what we’re throwing at you. I’m kind of feeling that way today, which is why I changed the title of this post from the usual “Seen and Heard” headline — since this would be the fourth of those in four days. But despite the different title, that’s still what this is — a round-up of recently released music we want to recommend.

ROTTING CHRIST

It seems like only a week ago that Season of Mist released the last advance track from Rotting Christ’s new album (featured here). Actually, it was only one week ago. But yesterday another track premiered. And of course I’m writing about it because I think it’s just as strong as the ones that have preceded it. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD (PART 2): VILLAINY, STRUGGLE WITH GOD, SLABDRAGGER, MUSSORGSKI, SECTIONED, THE MOSCOW DISTRICT PIPE BAND

RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 6 Responses »

Jan 252016

This is the second part of a large Monday round-up of new music that I discovered at various times over the last week, and this two-parter follows yet another round-up I put together on Saturday. Because this is Robert Burns’ birthday, I thought I’d throw in some Scottish music (both metal and not-metal) as the last two entries in this collection.

VILLAINY

The new album by the Dutch band Villainy — entitled Villainy II: Dim — was released last Friday via Bandcamp by Listenable Records. It includes cover art by Manuel Tinnemans (Comaworx).

I’ve been sitting on our advance copy of the album since mid-December and am embarrassed to say that I still haven’t heard all of it. But since I’m this far behind already, I thought I should use the proximity of the Bandcamp release at least to mention the album here — because what I’ve heard of it so far is excellent. Continue reading »

AMON AMARTH’S “JOMSVIKING”: NEW ALBUM, NEW SONG, NEW NORTH AMERICAN TOUR

Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 8 Responses »

Jan 252016

On March 25, those Swedish vikings in Amon Amarth will release a new concept album named Jomsviking, and just an hour ago they premiered a video for the first advance track, a song named “First Kill”. And on top of that, they announced dates for a North American tour that begins in April, with Entombed A.D. and Exmortus along for the trip. Before that, the band will play album release shows in four European cities.

“First Kill” tells the story of a son’s banishment by his father after he takes his first life, leading him on the bloodstained path of a lone warrior and outcast. The song offers no surprises — it’s another galloping Amon Amarth ear-worm that makes me want to reach for my axe and drinking horn, though not in that order. I have no doubt it will quickly become a live staple, because it will get people fired up at shows in short order. The video is fun to watch, too. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD (PART 1): ACERUS, MONOLITH, EMBALMER

Album Reviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 3 Responses »

Jan 252016

I’m making an effort to catch you up on all the new music I discovered last week that I’d like to recommend. I was able to post one round-up on Saturday but couldn’t get one finished for yesterday, so the plan is to post two today, this being the first installment.

ACERUS

In a recent edition of our weekly Rearview Mirror series I featured some music from the long-running death metal band The Chasm, a group that came together in Mexico City and now makes their home in Chicago. I mentioned in that feature that The Chasm’s main man Daniel Corchado has a side project called Acerus, and Acerus released a new full-length on January 15 entitled The Clock of Mortality. If you know anything about The Chasm, I doubt I have to sell you on this new Acerus release. But in case this is all new to you, I’ll say this: Continue reading »

ULVER: “ATGCLVLSSCAP”

Album Reviews 11 Responses »

Jan 252016

(Andy Synn reviews the new album by Norway’s Ulver.)

Every Ulver album is unique. But the manner in which the band set about creating their latest opus is certainly more unique than usual.

The music and sounds found on ATGCLVLSSCAP are, in essence, the results of a series of lengthy live improvisations and extemporisations that saw the band taking hold of whatever idea or inspiration would come to them, whether new or old (some of these tracks building from seeds sown in earlier material), and spinning it off into strange and uncharted territory, creating and conjuring new songs and new sounds almost on the fly.

And yet, that isn’t the whole story, as the fruits of these recordings were then taken back to be analysed, deconstructed, re-tracked and (in some cases) further reimagined in the confines of the band’s home-studio, with the final results managing to capture and maintain the sense of spontaneity and invention from those early live sessions whilst bolstering them with 1.21 gigawatts of pure sonic super-science! Continue reading »

KEVINP’S ALBUMS OF THE MONTH — JANUARY 2016

LISTMANIA 2016 22 Responses »

Jan 252016

(Here’s the first of KevinP’s monthly selection of releases for 2016, naming his Top 5 favorite albums released or scheduled for release during January.)

Writing these little “intros” for the monthly picks are by far my least favorite part of what I have to do. I always try and keep it pithy even on the off chance I have something profound to say. So on that note, here we go…… Continue reading »

EMBEDDED: “BLOODGEONING”

Premieres 4 Responses »

Jan 242016

Germany’s Embedded released their first demos back in 1996, and their debut album Banished From the Light in 2001. Two more albums followed that one, but the last of those (Beyond the Flesh) was in 2009. Finally, Embedded are on the verge of releasing a new full-length, appropriately named Bloodgeoning, via Apostasy Records, and we’ve got a full stream of the album for you right here.

The new album delivers eight tracks of full-throttle, no-holds-barred, no-mercy death metal. Deep, flesh-tearing riffs combine with bullet-spitting drum munitions and an array of growls, howls, and gruesome gurgles to produce a thoroughly brutal and galvanizing listening experience. Continue reading »

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