AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE: BALFOR — “BLACK SERPENT RISING”

 Premieres  No Responses »
Jan 122017
 

 

This past November we premiered a video for an impressive song called “Serpents of the Black Sun” by the Ukrainian band Balfor, and today we follow that with a premiere stream of the entire album which includes that song: Black Serpent Rising. The album will be released on January 15, 2017, by Drakkar Productions.

Balfor’s line-up includes current and former members of such notable groups as Khors, Raventale, and Hate Forest, and this new full-length follows the band’s last album, Barbaric Blood, by a long six years, with the 2013 EP Heralds of the Fall dividing the wait and significant line-up changes occurring over that interval as well. Continue reading »

BEGERITH: “A.D.A.M.”

 Album Reviews  5 Responses »
Jan 122017
 

 

(TheMadIsraeli wrote this review of the new album by Begerith, which was released on January 7.)

Sometimes we really are just born in the wrong place. Life really is just a matter of random chance and circumstance. Sometimes we’re born out of time, out of place, our identity isn’t consistent with what surrounds us, and we were always destined to be that eyesore. Begerith seem to have been so convinced of that wrongness that they literally relocated to the country that hosts the sound they identified with. Russian natives, they fled to the majesty of Poland, so they too could build their own ramparts on an imperial mobile sonic fortress that knows no equal.

Begerith are 100% consummate scholars of the Polish deathly metallic arts despite their Russian roots. If you love the scathing, bleak imperial might of Behemoth, Hate, or Vader you will be right at home here. A.D.A.M. is an impressive record, both in its dedication to what it wishes to be and also because it’s really fucking good. Continue reading »

LEPROUS VORTEX SUN

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  2 Responses »
Jan 122017
 

 

(Austin Weber reviews the new album by the Belarusian band Leprous Vortex Sun.)

Try as I might, it’s just not possible to catch every new gem that dropped in 2016, especially among releases that dropped in December, such as the Youdash which Islander covered and I recently covered myself elsewhere. But, since Youdash has been covered here, let’s focus instead on the Belarus black metal band Leprous Vortex Sun, who dropped a terrifying new album on December 21st. Thankfully, my fellow geeky friends often tip me off to stuff like this, so thank you Amir for sharing this with me!

I had to translate the album title (По направлению к Солнцу, плавящему изнутри кости), as it’s originally written in the band’s native tongue using the Russian Cyrillic alphabet, if I’m not mistaken. Roughly translated, what it comes out to in English is: Towards the sun, melting the bones inside. Couple that creepy title with the freakish artwork, and the vibe is set for something grim and otherworldly before you even hit play.

Once you do, it’s a veritable carnival of feverish horror at every turn, mainly consisting of lengthy lumbering songs punctuated by intense chaotic shifts. It poisons you with skin-crawling dissonance masked as “riffs” amidst waves of bestial hoarse screams and growls, while the drumming alternates between a lurch and a full-on weaponised full-throttle assault on a whim. To call this fucked up and deranged-sounding is almost an understatement. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: FLESHMEADOW (JØRN ANDRÉ STØRDAL)

 Interviews  No Responses »
Jan 122017
 

 

(Norway-based Karina Noctum returns with this interview of Jørn André Størdal, composer/guitarist of the Norwegian metal band Fleshmeadow, whose debut album Umbra we premiered and reviewed here just last month.)

Fleshmeadow are a pretty interesting band. They have a relentless, tight tempo that reminds me of Keep of Kalessin. They have the Norwegian sound roots firmly in place, but have dared to blend in sounds from other modern metal styles, including drumming patterns that range from straightforward powerful BM to a more blues/postmetal subtle elegance. When it comes to the guitars you’ll find BM-oriented harmonics and pretty techy scales that at times blend to conform again to a BM pattern.

So it is varied and textured. It is a refreshening musical experience, if you take into account the amount of black’n’roll that is coming out of Norway now. Layered over a  powerful drumming discharge is a subtle atmospheric layer skillfully created with the guitars. So it is both a beautiful and intense musical experience. This is a good solid release that deserves all your support. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): SHAARIMOTH — “TEMPLE OF THE ADVERSARIAL FIRE”

 Album Reviews, Premieres  9 Responses »
Jan 112017
 

 

Within Temple of the Adversarial Fire, the Norwegian conjurors in Shaarimoth open a Pandora’s box of wicked marvels, delivering such a mind-bending display of esoteric extravagance that the album threatens to eclipse most everything else released in the early months of this new year. It will be disseminated by W.T.C. Productions on January 13, and today we’re privileged to bring you the premiere stream of the whole thing, in all its twisted magnificence.

More than a decade has passed since Shaarimoth’s last emergence, with 2005’s Current 11. In that time, Shaarimoth have not lost the spiritual sources of their musical inspiration; the fires of the Adversary unmistakably fuel the music. Through the course of all 11 tracks, it’s a wild and chaotic interdimensional trip, a fusion of death and black metal with a pronounced experimental bent and an exotic, esoteric atmosphere, and it’s so brazenly and exuberantly creative that it’s likely to leave you wide-eyed and gasping by the time you reach the end. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: OSTOTS — “GAUEKO PIZTI (BEAST OF THE NIGHT)”

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Jan 112017
 

 

The Basque Country of Spain is home to Ostots, the solo black metal project of IA (also a member of Owl’s Blood) that began to take shape a dozen years ago and since then has released numerous demos, splits, and EPs, as well as two full-length albums. On January 12, Altare Productions (Portugal) and Skjold (Denmark) will jointly release a third Ostots album named Ezer Ezaren Araztasuna, and today we bring you a stream of its arresting first track, “Gaueko Pizti” (Beast of the Night).

“Gaueko Pizti” is made of contrasting textures and reflects contrasting sensations. It channels the ferocity of raw black metal in its moving waves of abrasive, distorted riffing and the harsh effect of the vocals, a conjoined pairing of gasping growls and strangled shrieks. But the song is also mystical and mesmerizing. In its atmosphere, it’s both isolated and defiant, somber and panoramic, ravaging and majestic. Its overall effect is captivating. Continue reading »

MISERIST: SELF-TITLED EP

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  1 Response »
Jan 112017
 

 

(This is Todd Manning’s review of the debut EP by Australia’s mysterious Miserist.)

A new year is upon us and there’s no reason to believe we’re not just one more step closer to the carnivorous abyss. No wonder extreme music just gets nastier and more oppressive, the most recent torchbearers coming in the form of the Australian mystery collective Miserist. This self-titled debut EP is a cavern-borne Death/Industrial hybrid, and strangely, considering the style, entirely instrumental. This one facet proves to be most compelling, coming across as a strange absence at first, but then as an abstraction upon repeated listens. The more one listens, the more this one facet opens itself up to speculation about the thought process behind the decision.

For the most part, Miserist alternate between devastating yet obscure slabs of blast-beat-driven Death Metal, often reminiscent of the mighty Portal, and more mid-paced Industrial-fueled sludge. Without vocals, the music becomes both inhuman and weightless; even the most straightforward riffs become atmospheric. And there is a layer of grime and filth overlaying the whole affair as well. The listener is invited to imagine all sorts of post-apocalyptic futures stimulated by their assault. Continue reading »

WOLVES CARRY MY NAME: “BLACK EARTH TONGUE”

 Album Reviews  1 Response »
Jan 112017
 

 

(We present Andy Synn’s review of the latest EP by Germany’s Wolves Carry My Name.)

Honestly, at some point I will start reviewing new albums from 2017. I promise.

In fact I plan to review a certain new album by a certain gang of US Black Metallers this Friday.

But, in the meantime, I’m continuing full-steam-ahead with my attempt to catch-up on some of last year’s most overlooked gems.

2016 is over when I say it’s over!!! Continue reading »

OUR LIST OF 2016’s MOST INFECTIOUS EXTREME METAL SONGS (PART 8): RIPPER, HOBBS’ ANGEL OF DEATH, VEKTOR

 MOST INFECTIOUS SONGS-2016  8 Responses »
Jan 102017
 

 

Welcome to the 8th Part of this evolving list of Most Infectious Songs from releases that appeared in 2016. To see the previous installments of the list and to learn the grounds for selection, click here.

I’ve again decided to group three songs together in this episode of the list rather than two, and I’ve again amused myself (and hopefully you) by combining tracks that I feel have a certain kinship among them, even though each one is distinctively different from the others.

RIPPER

Experiment of Existence, the new album by the Chilean band Ripper, was for me a big highlight of 2016. We got the chance to premiere a full album stream, and that was preceded by a review from Todd Manning (aka Allen Griffin) that included these words of praise: Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: ECHELON — “LEX TALIONIS”

 Premieres  No Responses »
Jan 102017
 

 

The second album by the super-group Echelon, entitled The Brimstone Aggrandizement, has received its fair share of attention in the many year-end lists we’ve posted this season from sources around the globe. Jonny Pettersson (Wombbath, Ashcloud, Henry Kane, Ursinne) put it in his Top 12. Vonlughlio from the Dominican Republic included it in a Top 50 list with the comment that “Mr. Ingram on vocals is at the top of his game with this performance — the man can do no wrong.” And here, from the chilly environs of Seattle, I’ll soon be adding a track from the album to a list I’ve been dribbling out this month. And now we have another reminder of why this album was one of the best death metal detonations of 2016, as we bring you a video for the track “Lex Talionis“.

I may be bending the usage of the word “premiere” in this post, because the album has been out since last month and the track you’re about to hear has recently been added to the Bandcamp player for the album. And although the video is new, it’s not as elaborate as most videos you may see here. But to be honest, any excuse will do for me to trumpet the attractions of The Brimstone Aggrandizement. If you’ve somehow missed our previous writings about it, feast your eyes upon Echelon’s line-up: Continue reading »

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