AN NCS PREMIERE: ZGARD — “UNDERWORLD BELLS”

 Premieres  7 Responses »
May 072014
 

Zgard is the one-man project of western Ukrainian musician Yaromisl; the name refers to an amulet in the culture of the Huzuls, an ethno-cultural group who for centuries have inhabited the Carpathian mountains, and Carpathian folklore has been a strong inspiration in the music of Zgard. The band’s fourth album has now been completed under the name Contemplation, and it’s scheduled for release by Svarga Music on June 23, 2014. Today we bring you the premiere of the album’s closing track, “Underworld Bells” [Дзвін потойбіччя].

Contemplation has been my first exposure to the music of Zgard, and “Underworld Bells” exemplifies much of what makes the album as a whole so captivating. Like almost all the tracks, it’s a long song, running almost 11 minutes, and yet I’m betting your interest won’t flag in the least as it pulls you into its epic atmosphere. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: BELPHEGOR, ALLEGAEON, MEDICATED, MEANKIND

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  8 Responses »
May 072014
 

Here’s the second of today’s planned round-ups of new and noteworthy music and informational items that your fiends at NCS have selectively sifted from the slurry of the interhole for your enjoyment and edification.

BELPHEGOR

It seems to be “Seth Siro Anton” day at NCS. First we helped premiere a new song from his band Septicflesh, and now we have the unveiling of his very recognizable artwork for Conjuring the Dead — the forthcoming 10th studio album by Belphegor. The album was recorded at Mana Studios with Hate Eternal’s Eric Rutan. It’s due for release by Nuclear Blast on August 8 in North America and the EU and on August 11 in the UK and France.

More than three years have passed since Blood Magick Necromance, and so we’re pretty damned hungry for some new Belphegor here at NCS. We’re ready to be fed! As soon as we have music to play for you, you can be sure we’ll do that without delay. To keep tabs on Belphegor, their FB page is at this place. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: SEPTICFLESH — “BURN”

 Premieres  17 Responses »
May 072014
 

As we’ve been faithfully reporting for months, the Greek symphonic death metal titans Septicflesh have a new album fittingly named Titan that’s coming our way in North America via Prosthetic Records (June 24). We’ve previously featured the first advance track from the album (“Order of Dracul”), and today we have the pleasure of helping premiere a second song named “Burn”.

The name is well-chosen, because the song does indeed burn. Blazing tremolo riffs blacken the music and turn it into a ripping assault. But that’s just for starters. The song also includes a massively headbangable stomping riff — as well as a beautiful soaring melody spun out like glistening gossamer by lead guitar and symphony. It’s a hell of a song. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: ORIGIN, WRETCHED, DEAD CONGREGATION, DOOM:VS

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  11 Responses »
May 072014
 

Over the last 24 hours I discovered (thanks in large part to tips from NCS friends) quite a lot of new music and news that I’d like to recommend to you — so much that I’m dividing the discoveries into two posts today, this being the first.

ORIGIN

I always look forward to new music from Origin. I know that, if nothing else, it will simulate the experience of wetting my finger and sticking it in a high voltage electrical outlet, except without the heart stoppage and the hair smokage.  And yesterday brought release details about the new Origin album — Omnipresent:

It will be released in North America by Nuclear Blast on July 8 (yet another birthday present for me!) and by Agonia Records in Europe on July 4. The cover art, which is visible above, is by Colin Marks (Nevermore, Kataklysm, Exodus), who also created the cover for the band’s Entity album.

Drummer John Longstreth, guitarist Paul Ryan, and bass-player Mike Flores are back, and this album will feature the Origin debut of ex-Skinless vocalist Jason Keyser. Colin Marston handled the mixing and mastering. Pre-ordering is available here for Agonia. This is a new band photo: Continue reading »

DRIPBACK: “FAILED FUTURES”

 Album Reviews  4 Responses »
May 072014
 

(Andy Synn reviews the debut album by UK-based DripBack.)

Some bands, heavy as they might be, are all about subtlety and nuance. Grand ideas and deep layers disguised by heaving guitars and booming drums.

Others are more direct, and want nothing more than to vent their frustration and deliver a serious metallic beating to whomever is (un)lucky enough to stumble upon their music.

Dripback are definitely the latter type of band.

Failed Futures – a vile concoction of brutal Death Metal, violent Hardcore, and pissed-off Punk (edged with touches of manic Grind) – is a high-percentage brew of gut-wrenching riffage and poisonous nihilism which shows no mercy and takes no prisoners over its 13-song/39-minute length. Continue reading »

THE INQUISITION INQUISITION

 Mosh Pit  80 Responses »
May 062014
 

In messages to me, a couple of NCS supporters have wondered why I haven’t written about the recent controversy swirling around the black metal band Inquisition, perhaps especially because the band are based here in Seattle, because we’ve praised their music in the past, and because just yesterday I praised their live performance on the recently concluded Metal Alliance tour headlined by Behemoth.

While I’m flattered that anyone would care what I think about this subject, I guess the short answer is that I have no relevant facts to add to the discussion and every opinion that could be expressed about the issues (both intelligent and moronic) has been uttered elsewhere already. Also, it seems like every couple of days, some new piece of information surfaces that might be worth considering before expressing an opinion. Of course, none of these factors has stopped other metal bloggers from sticking their oar in the water, so I can understand why some people would wonder why I haven’t.

Given the possibility that our silence could be misinterpreted, I finally decided it might be worth an explanation. Also, I suspect that at least some of you might be interested in expressing your own opinions in a forum that isn’t dominated by idiots — and whatever else might be said about NCS, I think it’s undeniable that intelligent discussion in our Comment sections is one of the site’s strengths. So, here goes…. Continue reading »

TOURISM: SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED FOR CONQUERORS OF THE WORLD TOUR (SEPTICFLESH, FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE, HOUR OF PENANCE, NECRONOMICON)

 Metal News  4 Responses »
May 062014
 

Not long ago I got all slobbery over the announcement that Septicflesh, Fleshgod Apocalypse, Hour of Penance, and Necronomicon would be joining forces for a North American tour this year. Today, the schedule for the tour was announced.

It begins in Virginia on June 22 and ends in Denver on July 12. There are 14 shows in the US, five in Canada and — most importantly — one in Seattle.  Yes, I am a self-centered prick, but I know you’ll forgive me.

The tour is timed to capitalize on the release of Titan on June 24 via Prosthetic Records in North America, Titan being the name of the new Septicflesh album. I eagerly await that record, as well as this tour.

If you can’t make out the dates on that tour poster, here they are (celebrate or moan, depending on your location): Continue reading »

CLICK BAIT

 Mosh Pit  23 Responses »
May 062014
 

I got your soft serve right here.  Dig in!

You know what “click bait” is, don’t you? You can’t spend any time web surfing without running into it. It’s like a dog turd on the sidewalk, except with ice cream on top to disguise the turd. It’s a way of writing headlines for web posts that will lure people into clicking through the links so the web-page proprietors will get more page views and earn a few extra nano-pennies of advertising. The headlines are always way over the top and sometimes downright false or misleading — the old bait-and-switch in the internet age.

I’m sick of seeing them on Facebook, even though I know what they are and never click on them. Well, almost never. I seem unable to resist any headline that includes the words “nude” and “Scarlett Johansson” in the same sentence. But maybe I’m being too moralistic.

I’m starting to see other metal sites use click-bait headlines. Maybe we should, too. Maybe people have become so inundated with this shit that if you don’t tell them whatever you’re writing about will make them cum immediately, they’ll figure it’s not worth their time. While we don’t advertise or make money from anything else we do, we do get a lot of psychic gratification from our traffic numbers. So maybe it’s time to join the crowd. Continue reading »

METAL FOR YOUR CINCO DE FUCKIN MAYO

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  24 Responses »
May 052014
 

I have mixed feelings about Cinco de Mayo. I grew up in central Texas, and celebrated the date every year after a certain point. On the other hand, the certain point was when I reached drinking age, which was the age at which my friends and I could convince winos to buy us tequila at liquor stores. That became a road to misery.

My first exposure to tequila was at age 16 on a high school Spanish Club trip to Monterrey. One of my buds, who was fluent in Spanish without having to be taught, evaded the teachers by climbing out a hotel window and down a fire escape on our first afternoon there, returning with a couple of bottles. That night I never made it out of the bus that took our teachers and us to some restaurant. I said I was sick, and that was no fuckin’ lie.

Even now, all it takes is the smell of straight tequila to bring on a wave of nausea. Doesn’t mean I’ve given up on it (there have been many subsequent tequila poisoning experiences in the many years since that Monterrey trip), but these days I prefer to take my poison in a margarita. Goes down easier, though a high percentage of the time I still wind up crouched over a toilet begging for mercy.

But I don’t mean to suggest that Cinco de Mayo is nothing more than a chance to get shit-faced. There’s rich history behind the date as well, but in my mind it’s also an excuse to revisit some Mexican metal. That’s another form of poison I can’t seem to resist. Continue reading »

AGALLOCH: “THE SERPENT & THE SPHERE”

 Album Reviews  23 Responses »
May 052014
 

(Close on the heels of the album’s streaming premiere, Andy Synn reviews the new work by Oregon’s AGALLOCH.)

The new Agalloch album is currently streaming in full over at NPR. In a sense this makes the idea of reviewing it somewhat redundant. After all, if you want to know what it’s like you can just head on over there and click ‘Play’.

But there’s something to be said for the idea that a review isn’t just about merely describing the songs – “That’s a good riff”, “this bit’s really good”, “wow, aren’t they really fast/technical/brutal” – but can also be a place to talk about the band and their music in wider terms, using the offering of a new album as a starting point for further discussion.

That, and the fact that several of you might not have time or space in your lives to access the NPR site, or might simply prefer to wait for the physical release, prompted me to put metaphorical pen to paper and actually review The Serpent and the Sphere… for myself as well as for you, our readers. Continue reading »

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