AN NCS PREMIERE: KHEMMIS — “BEYOND THE DOOR”

 Exceptions to the Rule, Premieres  4 Responses »
Oct 072016
 

12 Jacket (3mm Spine) [GDOB-30H3-007}

 

The rise of Denver’s Khemmis into the upper echelons of doom has been nothing short of meteoric, thanks in large part to the enormous appeal of their 2015 debut album Absolution. Since that album’s release, Khemmis have confronted what always comes with stellar debuts — the pressures and perils of high expectations by fans for a follow-on album. In two short weeks, that testing time will arrive as 20 Buck Spin releases the second Khemmis album, Hunted. By one measure, Hunted has already met and exceeded expectations — Sam Turner has again created one hell of a metal album cover, with the Khemmis wizard on an armored steed, flanked by death dealers you wouldn’t want to meet in a dark alley. As it turns out, the music meets and exceeds expectations, too.

In 2015 we had the pleasure of premiering a song from Absolution, along with one of the most interesting and entertaining band interviews we’ve ever published. We now count ourselves lucky that we also get to bring you the premiere of a song from Hunted in advance of its October 21 release. Its name is “Beyond the Door“. Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: COGNITIVE — “HAUNTED JUSTICE”

 Premieres  4 Responses »
Oct 062016
 

cognitive-deformity

 

Our history with New Jersey’s Cognitive dates back to my enthusiastic 2013 review of their debut EP The Horrid Swarm, which attempted to capture its impact with these words:  “By the time it ended, my head had been spun around, like that possessed chick in The Exorcist. You know, all the way around, but somehow still attached.” We spilled still more effusive praise in multiple posts about their self-titled debut album in 2014. And now Cognitive have come roaring back with a second album named Deformity, which will be their first to be released by Unique Leader Records.

To help introduce you to Deformity, we have for you today a lyric video by Scott Rudd for the album’s third track, “Haunted Justice“. Continue reading »

INFANT DEATH, FILTHDIGGER, SEVENTH ANGEL

 Interviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  1 Response »
Oct 062016
 

infant-death-violent-rites

 

(Norway-based Karina Cifuentes usually brings us interviews (such as the one yesterday with Saor), but today she introduces three underground bands to your ears — though one is accompanied by an interview.)

INFANT DEATH

This time I wanted to introduce some underground bands here. So I have selected some thrash bands. When it comes to thrash I tend to prefer it mixed with some other genre. This is because I really like variety and complexity just to keep it interesting.So the first one will be Infant Death from Trondheim (Norway), the city where the infamous The Mysteriis dom Sathanas cathedral is located. Continue reading »

BUSHWHACKER: “THE FALSE DILEMMA”

 Album Reviews  1 Response »
Oct 062016
 

bushwhacker-the-false-dilemma

 

(Andy Synn presents this review of the new album by the Canadian band Bushwhacker. Full music stream included.)

Up next in my  attempt to focus in more on the smaller, more unappreciated members of the international metal community, we’re off to the wild wastelands of Canada to check in with the inveterate proglodytes of Bushwhacker, whose wide palette of seamlessly integrated influences helps make their second album, The False Dilemma, an extremely rewarding listening experience.

Don’t get the wrong impression though. Despite describing this album as “rewarding”, this is no self-indulgent exercise in beard-stroking pretentiousness — this is an album that hits hard and makes no apologies for doing so, an album with riffs and balls and attitude up the yinyang… or wherever people keep their balls these days. Continue reading »

AN NCS VIDEO PREMIERE: SIMULACRO — “ECO VI”

 Premieres  2 Responses »
Oct 062016
 

Simulacro album cover

 

In June we had the pleasure of premiering one of the fascinating songs from Echi Dall’Abisso (“Echoes From the Abyss”), the stunning new album by the Sardinian trio Simulacro. The album was released on September 26 by Third I Rex, and now we present a striking video for the album’s sixth “echo”.

The sheer physical and emotional power of “Eco VI” needs no explanation, nor any comprehension of the lyrics or its context within the album to feel its impact. Interpreting the mystery of the video and appreciating its beauty can likewise be left to the imagination and senses of the viewer. But for those who desire a deeper understanding, it may help to read this statement by Simulacro’s drummer and backing vocalist Anamnesi about the conceptual approach of the album: Continue reading »

SOLUTION .45: “NIGHTMARES IN THE WAKING STATE – PART II”

 Album Reviews  No Responses »
Oct 062016
 

solution-45-nightmares-in-the-waking-state-part-ii

 

(DGR reviews the new album by Sweden’s Solution .45, which is out now via AFM Records.)

Five years after their debut, Solution .45 returned to the musical stage with Nightmares In The Waking State last year. The band had intended for Nightmares to be a multiple-part release, and in that sense the group were not fucking around.

Often, when a band announces multiple-part albums some sort of wrench will get thrown into the works that results in delays, or extended waits between the discs — so if you enjoyed the themes present on said hypothetical first disc, you often had to just sit and twiddle your thumbs for a few years whilst waiting for a followup.

Nightmares In The Waking State doesn’t have that issue, as earlier this month saw the release of the second part of that album — with a color-muted and sepia-toned version of the first part’s Pär Olofsson drawn artwork. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: TREURILG, 40 WATT SUN, WARNING

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  No Responses »
Oct 052016
 

treurwilg-departure

 

(Grant Skelton steps in for round-up duty today with a trio of features.)

TREURWILG

Is it just me, or does every funeral doom band just hang out in cemeteries in the autumn? Their promo photos would lead one to that conclusion. But that’s fine by me, as I enjoy autumn, cemeteries, and funeral doom. And why not partake of all 3 together?

Enter Treurwilg from Tillburg, Netherlands. The band’s name is Dutch for “weeping willow.” Just listen to their new song “As His Final Light Is Fading” and you’ll see just how well that name fits the music. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: SAOR

 Interviews  1 Response »
Oct 052016
 

andy-marshall-saor

 

(Norway-based Karina Noctum returns to NCS with this interview of Andy Marshall, the man behind Scotland’s Saor, whose new album Guardians will be released on November 11. Photos by Land of Light Photography.)

When it comes to composition of both music and lyrics, do you need to have a particular mindset or do you need to be at a particular place to compose?

I don’t need to be in any particular place but I like to take my acoustic guitar with me when I’m visiting my family’s cottage in the Isle of Skye. It’s really remote and the landscape from the garden is stunning. I also get a lot of inspiration from hill walking or when I’ve been out exploring in the wild. Sometimes it just takes a film, book, or soundtrack to trigger my creative side. I usually start out with a guitar riff or melody then start adding other instruments. As for mindset, I definitely have a place in my head I go to when I’m writing Saor material. It’s total escapism. Continue reading »

AN NCS EP PREMIERE: CONSTRUCT OF LETHE — “THE GRAND MACHINATION”

 Album Reviews, Premieres, SHORT BUT SWEET  2 Responses »
Oct 052016
 

construct-of-lethe-the-grand-machination

 

On October 7, the death metal band Construct of Lethe will release a new concept EP named The Grand Machination. Not long ago we premiered one of the six tracks on the EP, and today we have for you a full stream (along with a review).

For those who may only now be discovering the band, Construct of Lethe was started as a project of Tony Petrocelly (ex-Bethledeign, Dead Syndicate, Deranged Theory, Xaoc) and now includes a full line-up of Petrocelly (guitars, bass), David Schmidt (vocals), and Swiss lead guitarist Patrick Bonvin (Near Death Condition). Session drums on the EP were provided by the veteran Kevin Talley. Continue reading »

OCTOPUS KRAFT: “THROUGH A THOUSAND WOODS”

 Album Reviews  1 Response »
Oct 052016
 

octopus-kraft-through-a-thousand-woods

 

(Andy Synn wrote this review of the second album by the Ukrainian band Octopus Kraft.)

With so many highly-anticipated, big-name albums scheduled for release in the last quarter of 2016 it would be all too easy to fall into the trap of spending all our time focussing on the big releases by the big bands, to the exclusion of the smaller and lesser-known ones. After all, content drives traffic, and more traffic means more clicks and more massaging of the old ego, right?

The thing is, as much as we do love writing about the bigger bands when the mood takes us (and no-one’s going to tell us we’re not allowed to write about whatever/whoever we damn well want), we understand that writing about a big band or a big new release won’t always be the best use of our time.

Obviously, if we think we have a particularly interesting take on things we’ll probably put pen to paper/digit to keyboard and rattle something off which will (hopefully) be worth reading, but there’s always the danger – especially if we’re just one more voice of praise amongst a wider chorus– that whatever we write will just get lost in the general cacophony.

So as much as we enjoy writing about the big names… it’s often more worthwhile for us to focus our energies on covering the smaller, less well-exposed bands. Which is precisely what I’m doing this week, beginning with yesterday’s review of the fantabulous We Had It Coming, by Dormant Ordeal, and continuing today with the second album from Ukranian Post Metal prodigies Octopus Kraft. Continue reading »

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