NO CLEAN SINGING

SHOW REVIEW: KATATONIA, GOST, THROWN INTO EXILE — LOS ANGELES, NOV. 30, 2023

Dec 132023

(Erstwhile NCS contributor Ben Manzella attended the performances of Katatonia, Gost, and Thrown into Exile at the Echoplex in Los Angeles on November 30, 2023, and he has given us the following concert review along with lots of the photos he made during the show.)

Until last night, it had been six years since my last opportunity to see Katatonia live. I wasn’t sure what to expect with what I saw as a confusing three-band lineup on a Thursday night. Even Jonas of Katatonia mentioned as he greeted the audience that he doesn’t often go to gigs on Thursday nights but he and the band greatly appreciated all of us making time to see them. The collective cheer at the Echoplex made it clear the appreciation was mutual. Continue reading »

2023 – A YEAR IN REVIEW(S): THE GOOD

LISTMANIA 2023 21 Responses »

Dec 122023

(Andy Synn continues his annual retrospective with a collection of links and recommendations)

Every year, pretty much without fail, someone – either in the comments here or on social media – gets weirdly mad about List Week.

Either they seem to think that I’m lying (although, why would I?) or, even worse, bragging (again, why?) about the albums/artists I’ve listened to.

Here’s the thing though – this isn’t about me. It’s about providing our readers, many of whom don’t have as much time as do to keep up with everything that’s released each year (and I still miss more than I catch) with a one-stop-shop of links they can bookmark – broken up by category/sub-genre – and listen to if/when they get the chance.

Today’s list, the “Good” list, is the biggest and widest-ranging one of the week, running the gamut from albums which were generally enjoyable, albeit flawed, to albums which only narrowly missed out on my “Great” list, and everything in between.

Obviously it’s in no way comprehensive, so before you start asking “but what about [x]?” remember that a) it’s impossible for any site, let alone any individual writer, to listen to and cover absolutely everything that comes out in any given year, and b) there’s still my list of the “Great” albums, the top-tier of the year, yet to come!

AN NCS EP PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): FERAL FORMS — “PREMALIGNANT”

Album Reviews, Premieres, SHORT BUT SWEET No Responses »

Dec 122023

Before the first notes are heard, Feral Forms‘ debut EP Premalignant ought to grab attention quickly among gnarly denizens of the metal underground. There’s the “for fans of” recommendation by the labels who are releasing it: Angelcorpse, Teitanblood, Diocletian, Black Curse.

And then there’s the fact that this Italian quartet features current and former members of The Secret, Grime, Claustrum, and Fierce.

And then there’s that cover art, staring you in the face with those bulging eyes, dissolving face, and strange forehead cavities.

Now that they (and we) have your attention, it’s time to launch the music, though we must say that the EP’s title is either misleading or just plain scary: If this EP’s music is “premalignant”, it’s frightening to think what Feral Forms might do if they decided to channel fully emergent malignancy. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: THE ANSWER LIES IN THE BLACK VOID

Interviews No Responses »

Dec 122023

(Today we present Comrade Aleks‘ interview of Jason Köhnen, one of the two main members of the Hungarian/Dutch “transcendental doom” band The Answer Lies in the Black Void, whose new album was released in October by Burning World Records.)

The Answer Lies In The Black Void is the duo of Martina Horváth (vocals) from Thy Catafalque and Jason Köhnen (all instruments) from Celestial Season, The Lovecraft Sextet, Bong-Ra, and ex-The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble. Their first atmospheric doom metal album Forlorn was released in 2021 and got very enthusiastic feedback.

Horváth and Köhnen have continued their mysterious searches of an avant-garde vision and the result of this work is the second full-length piece Thou Shalt. Inspired by Carl Jung’s “shadow work” this new album was scheduled for release on October 13th via Burning World Records and I caught the band awkwardly right during their tour. That led to a few delays, and the interview turned out to be shorter than I expected. And yet, here is The Answer. Continue reading »

HEALTH: “RAT WARS”

Album Reviews 4 Responses »

Dec 112023

(Here’s Wil Cifer‘s review of the new album by L.A.-based HEALTH, which was released last week by Loma Vista Recordings.)

The industrial trio HEALTH continues to make artistic noise, with a haunting melody as the focal point of even their most confrontational moments. I have been a fan of this project for some time, but this is the first time I have felt compelled to review these guys here. Rat Wars finds the band to be sonically more appropriate. They have always been metal adjacent, but this time, though they might not be flashing devil horns with their foot on the monitor, it is their heaviest work to date.

As I searched for this album online earlier in the week, I found a comment on Reddit that gave me a chuckle as it referred to this album as ‘The Downward Spiral” for people with two monitors. It’s a pretty fair assessment. The band’s full vision unfolds on this album, opening the doors for the larger metal community to embrace them. Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: IXIAN — “VINES IN TIME WILL COAT THE GRAY”

Premieres No Responses »

Dec 112023

Ixian is the prolific solo project of Daniel Shroyer from Athens, Georgia. This year alone Ixian has released two splits, an EP, and four albums. The most recent album, Vines In Time Will Coat The Gray, came out in September, and was co-released by Owlripper Recordings.

Ixian‘s releases move around quite a lot in their stylistic ingredients. Metal-Archives classifies Ixian as “Post-Black Metal”, but that’s probably because they couldn’t think of anything else for music and noise that’s so difficult to pin down.

Some of the conceptual themes of the newest album were captured in the poetry of the title track’s words: Continue reading »

2023 – A YEAR IN REVIEW(S): THE DISAPPOINTING

LISTMANIA 2023 15 Responses »

Dec 112023

(It’s time once again for Andy Synn‘s annual List Week here at NCS)

As always, I want to start off this article with a little explanation of the rationale behind it.

In general, as I’m sure you’re aware, it’s our prerogative here to only write about the bands and albums we actually like.

That doesn’t mean, however, that we shy away from providing constructive criticism when we think it’s warranted (at least, I don’t), as loving something doesn’t mean just ignoring its flaws.

And it’s in that spirit that my annual “Disappointing” article is written, not as an attempt to court clicks or controversy, but as a means of expressing the very simple idea that the bands we love aren’t perfect, and sometimes even the best of them stumble or fail to live up to the hype.

That’s not an excuse for people just to start shitting on bands they don’t like – we just tend to delete those sorts of comments without giving them a second thought – it’s more about providing a communal space to express our disappointment that something we were looking forward to didn’t, for whatever reason, measure up to our expectations and/or hopes.

Obviously there’ll be disagreements (I’m pretty sure that one or two of my selections here will upset a few people, though I need to stress again that I’m not trying to upset or provoke anyone, these are just my honest opinions) but I think that, if we can all remain civil, we’ll get through this together.

OVERFLOWING STREAMS ON A SATURDAY (TOO MANY BANDS TO NAME)

Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 7 Responses »

Dec 092023

Happy Saturday, or whatever other day you’re in when you come across this collection of new music.

I’m taking a lazy way out here — mainly just spewing a bunch of new metal songs and videos at you without much, or any, of the usual commentary. It’s actually not because I’m feeling lazy, it’s because I’m getting crushed by my fucking day job. Sadly (very sadly for me), it’s going to get worse as we approach the end of the year, and even worser in January.

I’ve never given any details about my job, but it’s not 9-5. Some days it might be Noon-3, but other days it might be 5 (a.m.) to midnight, and I have no control over the schedule. Mostly it leaves me plenty of time for NCS. Now, and increasingly until mid-January, it’s going to choke me.

At some point soon I’ll explain what that’s likely to do to some portions of our annual LISTMANIA extravaganza and the usual schedule of daily premieres, but not now. Now I only have time enough to start the spewing of this new stuff I’ve enjoyed, presented in alphabetical order by band name. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: ANDRACCA — “OCEANS OF FIRE”

Premieres No Responses »

Dec 082023

Through their new album To Bare the Weight of Death, which will be released next month by Vendetta Records, the UK black metal band Andracca delve into deep subjects, perhaps the most profound and challenging subjects that confront, or eventually will confront, all of us.

The album’s title itself points to its themes — the experiences of grief and despair caused by death, and in this case, the acceptance of mortality, a reconciliation with death that can be life-affirming. Inspired by the band’s own personal experiences and struggles with loss, the album is intended to manifest “a unification of life and death”, “a triumph of resilience and will, inviting listeners to embrace their own lives with renewed vigor”.

Obviously, these subjects are emotionally powerful, ranging from extreme trauma to struggle, and ultimately to endurance, acceptance, and maybe something even more valuable. They are subjects that call music of equal emotional power.

Did Andracca succeed? You’re about to get the beginning of an answer through our premiere of a video for the song “Oceans of Fire“. Continue reading »

2023 – A YEAR IN REVIEW(S): THE EPs

LISTMANIA 2023 9 Responses »

Dec 082023

(Andy Synn begins his annual week-long retrospective of the year a little early with a round-up of EPs and short-form releases)

One thing which occurred to me while putting together this list is that I have been extremely remiss in covering EPs this year.

Which is a shame, because a good EP… a really good EP… can be a wonderful thing, allowing bands to explore fresh ideas, or simply consolidate their very best material, in a more focussed and tightly-written format.

So here’s an early taste of my yearly round-up (which, let me make very clear, is in no way comprehensive and contains some notable omissions of things which, sadly, I just didn’t get around to hearing), including links to all the EPs, splits, and other assorted short-form releases I’ve listened to over the last twelve months, finishing up with my “personal” Top Ten of the year!

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