AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE: UNAUSSPRECHLICHEN KULTEN — “KEZIAH LILITH MEDEA”

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Jun 022017
 

 

On this day Iron Bonehead Production releases Keziah Lilith Medea (Chapter X), the fourth album by the Chilean death cult Unaussprechlichen Kulten, and with dread and trembling we bring you a full stream of all 8 songs.

It is perhaps no coincidence that the album is being released on the anniversary of the beginning of the Salem Witch Trials in 1692, which resulted in the imprisonment of more than 200 accused people, the execution of 19, and the perishing of still others during imprisonment. As developed not only through the music but also in the 12 pages of the album’s booklet, this new album had a specific conceptual underpinning. As the band has explained: Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: WEAPÖNIZER — “MALEFACTOR”

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Jun 022017
 


Photo by Zeela Aeschliman

 

There they are, sighting down the barrels of guns behind their shades, festooned with leather, gauntlets, and chains, brandishing bellies and bad attitudes. Yes indeed, Denver’s Weapönizer have returned, and they mean business.

“What kind of business?”, you might ask, if you missed their debut album five years ago and couldn’t guess from their demeanor. We’re about to give you some of that mean business through our premiere of “Malefactor“, which is the opening blast from Weapönizer’s new album, the well-named Lawless Age, in advance of its late-June release by 20 Buck Spin. Continue reading »

NOVEMBERS DOOM: “HAMARTIA”

 Album Reviews, Exceptions to the Rule  2 Responses »
Jun 022017
 

 

(This is Andy Synn’s review of the new album by Novembers Doom, released in April.)

 

This past weekend in Baltimore I was… well, “harangued” might be too strong a word… by DGR for failing to produce a review of this album, something which I’d apparently promised to do several times over the last couple of months.

So, suitably admonished and abashed, here’s my attempt to fulfil my obligation, starting with a little bit of historical context for those of you who enjoy that sort of thing. Continue reading »

BODY COUNT: “BLOODLUST”

 Album Reviews  4 Responses »
Jun 022017
 

 

(This is TheMadIsraeli’s review of the new album by Body Count.)

 

Say what you want, but in concept the mixing of rap/hip-hop and metal is something that makes complete fucking sense. A lot of music from both genres encapsulates a lot of the same angst, rage, and darkness, depending on where you look. I don’t know if I can explain why nü-metal to many people was an abomination of a music genre, although I think it’s the cornball excessive whiteness of it, how much it diluted down the metal aspect to relatively inoffensive minimalism, and how faux edgy it was. Thing is, early nü-metal was experimental and ambitious and found a good middle ground between the two styles. Rage Against The Machine is a favorite band of mine actually, and I think they’re the primo example of this being done to its maximum potential.

Body Count is the other most notable example. I like Body Count’s entire discography and I’ve always felt they were shamefully unsung heroes of thrash/metallic hardcore. I think it’s interesting that in the fifth track on this album, a pretty fantastic cover of “Reign In Blood”, there’s a monologue by Ice-T preceeding it where he talks about Suicidal Tendencies having a gang-banger from the streets vibe about their music and how it influenced Body Count. I’ve always liked hardcore that had this same vibe, which is why bands like Biohazard come to mind, who unashamedly had this vibe going in a way that was authentic. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: OSKAR J. FREDERIKSEN (SLÆGT)

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Jun 022017
 

 

(We present Argentinian writer Matías Gallardo’s interview of Oskar J. Frederiksen, vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Danish band Slægt, whose excellent debut album Domus Mysterium was released on May 5 by Ván Records.)

 

If you already know Denmark’s prodigal sons Slægt then you are aware of the amazing tunes they’ve been putting out since their formation in 2011. If not, then you should know they initially started as a black metal band with ties to the traditional sound of the genre, but mutated into a completely different beast with 2015’s EP Beautiful and Damned, a surprising collection of songs that mixed the dark atmosphere of black metal with the electricity of classic heavy metal heroes like Iron Maiden or Denmark’s coolest granddads Mercyful Fate.

After signing with German cult label Ván Records, this year saw Slægt taking their music to a new level with Domus Mysterium, an album that blends sophistication, aggression, and melody in equal parts and should grant this four-piece a place amongst the most exciting new bands in the extreme metal scene. Oskar J. Frederiksen is the lead vocalist, lyricist, and rhythm guitarist of the band and he kindly answered the following questions for NCS. Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: DARKFLIGHT — “CRUSHED”

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Jun 012017
 

 

Almost two decades into their existence, the Bulgarian atmospheric black/doom metal band Darkflight have completed a new album (their fifth) entitled The Hereafter, which will be released on June 22nd, and today we bring you the premiere of the album’s opening track, the well-named “Crushed“.

While Darkflight is a two-person band consisting of Ivo Iliev (vocals, guitars, synths, drums) and Milen Todorov (bass, clean vocals), the new album also features guest appearances by current or former members of Ars Moriendi (France), Hallows Eve (U.S.), and Eleven Drops To Sink Into (Bulgaria) — and former Hallows Eve vocalist Steve Cannon appears on the song we’re streaming today. Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 85: MEMFIS

 Album Reviews, THE SYNN REPORT  No Responses »
Jun 012017
 

 

(We present Andy Synn’s installment of THE SYNN REPORT for May, gathering together reviews of the discography of the Swedish band Memfis — who are on Facebook here.)

Recommended for fans of: Burst, Intronaut, Extol

Much like last month’s edition of The Synn Report, today’s post is a day late (and a dollar short) due to, well, me being busy living my life and enjoying myself. That’s right, I do in fact have a life outside of NCS sometimes. Who would have thought?

Still, I’m back in the game, and back in the saddle, now, so how about some “new” music for you all, in the shape of Prog-Metal epicurists Memfis?

The Swedish quartet made some small, but stylish, waves with the release of their debut album The Wind-Up way back in 2006, offering an intriguing and characterful conglomeration of progressive melody, metallic energy, and occasionally outlandish technicality, all topped off with a healthy helping of heartfelt, Hardcore-tinged emotion.

Unfortunately, legal complications ended up interfering with and delaying the release of their second album, meaning that the band were unable to capitalize on the burgeoning momentum gathered by their debut, and have been in something of a liminal state ever since – with the five-track Silva EP in 2013 being the only subsequent sign to date that things are still ticking away in the background.

Now, apparently the group are currently hard at work on album number three – and have been for some time, in fact – but there’s still no title or release date announced, so we’ll all just have to wait and see how things unfold.

Thankfully though, the two albums, and one EP, featured here should serve to whet your appetite in the meantime! Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): ZEIT — “KONVERGENZ”

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Jun 012017
 

 

I’m approaching the passage of one full year since discovering the band Zeit from Leipzig, Germany, the encounter occasioned by a video filmed in an abandoned coal power station in East Germany. I thought of the video as a modern equivalent of the ruins made famous by Shelley’s famous sonnet about that long-forgotten “King of Kings”, Ozymandias, and I thought of the song as a grim, intensely foreboding, but also pulse-pounding experience.

The song was “Verloren”, drawn from the band’s 2015 EP Gram. It was an impressive outing in more ways than one, a fashioning of black metal with heavy strands of sound interwoven from other genres (principally sludge and doom). Now Zeit are on the brink of releasing their first album, Konvergenz, and we have the pleasure of streaming it for you today. Continue reading »

GET TO THE POINT: MIKKA LAMMASSAARI (WOLFHEART)

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Jun 012017
 

 

(KevinP returns to NCS with another edition in his series of brief interviews, this time talking with guitarist Mikka Lammassaari from the Finnish band Wolfheart, a perennial NCS favorite whose latest album Tyhjyys was released earlier this year and reviewed here.)

 

K: This is now the 2nd album you’ve been a part of after Tuomas [Saukkonen] handled all the duties himself in the debut, Winterborn. So has your role changed since Shadow World?

M: This is a pretty common misconception, since I was already contributing the guitar solos on Winterborn. On Shadow World my role expanded a bit as I wrote a couple songs and was more involved in the guitar recordings.

On the new album Tyhjyys, I had to step back a little bit because my little baby boy was born and I wanted to shift focus more towards life at home. I still managed to squeeze in the founding of one song and got to write the guitar solos, so I´m very pleased with that.

So my role actually got a bit smaller on the new album, but Tuomas did amazing work writing the songs and recording guitars, so all went well. Continue reading »

GOATWHORE: “VENGEFUL ASCENSION”

 Album Reviews  3 Responses »
Jun 012017
 

 

(Here’s Wil Cifer’s review of the new album by Goatwhore from New Orleans, which will be released on June 23rd via Metal Blade Records.)

Seven albums in, and the swampy metal machine known as Goatwhore continues to press forward with a formula that would have gone flat for other bands a couple of albums ago. I am not sure when they have had the time to record anything, as these guys seem to be constantly on the road, so the fact they squeezed these sessions in is impressive in its own right.

This album is not a wild deviation from their sound, but the songwriting has sharper focus and, with their sound man producing, it plays off their strength, which is the energy of their live shows. This might also be one of the band’s most melodic albums, despite the fact it also seems to be Goatwhore fully embracing their death metal side.  Normally their sound is characterized by being a hybrid swirl of sub-genres. Here, beginning with the first track, the aggression locks in everything in such a way that the hooks are shoved down your throat. Continue reading »

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