NO CLEAN SINGING

AN NCS PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): BLUT AUS NORD AND ÆVANGELIST — “CODEX OBSCURA NOMINA”

Jun 142016

To get right to the point: On June 17, Debemur Morti Productions will release Codex Obscura Nomina, an album-length split by Blut Aus Nord and Ævangelist, and we now bring you the chance to listen to all of it.

The album includes one EP-length track by Ævangelist named “Threshold of the Miraculous” and four tracks by Blut Aus Nord, which are themselves parts of a unified work called “Spectral Subsonic Waves (The Sound is an Organic Matter)”. Each piece stands alone, yet they achieve the ideal for a split release of any kind: They complement each other in ways that enable them, together, to magnify the impact that each produces separately. Continue reading »

SHORT BUT SWEET: JUST BEFORE DAWN — “THE GHOSTS OF THE EASTERN FRONT”

Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET 3 Responses »

Jun 132016

The Swedish death metal war machine Just Before Dawn has already given the world two excellent albums (Precis innan gryningen (2013) and The Aftermath (2014)), and the first installment in a trilogy of EPs (2015’s The Dead and Those About To Die), and now JBD mastermind Anders Biazzi and a formidable battalion of allies are on the verge of launching their latest offensive — a new EP named The Ghosts of the Eastern Front. — and below you will find some thoughts about the EP as well as a teaser video with audio samples from the songs.

Like the first EP in the trilogy, this new one will be released on cassette tape by Till You Fukkin Bleed Records, and the songs on the cassette will also later be included on a new full-length release planned for later this year. Continue reading »

A DARK DESCENT / UNSPEAKABLE AXE ROUND-UP: PHOBOCOSM, GHOULGOTHA, SEWERCIDE, SHEIDIM

Album Reviews 7 Responses »

Jun 132016

(In this post Todd Manning provides brief reviews of new releases by Dark Descent and Unspeakable Axe.)

Death might just be the overarching theme of 2016, but the tandem of Dark Descent Records and their sub-imprint Unspeakable Axe are certainly spinning this in their favor by releasing a continuous string of remarkable Death Metal albums. While I have already had the opportunity to talk about new albums from the likes of Ripper, Nucleus, and Hemotoxin, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to gush about a few more albums from the label.

PHOBOCOSM

First up is the new album from Montreal-based Phobocosm. Bringer of Drought is the follow-up to their impressive debut Deprived and is nothing short of astonishing. Despite the label’s reputation as being at the forefront of the New Wave of Old School Death Metal, none of these bands seems to be unoriginal or regressive in such a way that causes them to lack their own identity. This is perhaps best illustrated by Phobocosm, who seem to marry the epic feel of classic Neurosis to the Death Metal/Doom hybrid of Inverloch and Disembowelment. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: ANGUISH

Interviews 2 Responses »

Jun 132016

(Comrade Aleks brings us another interview from the domain of doom, this time confronting the Swedish band Anguish.)

This angry doom metal band from Swedish Uppsala made some noise with two full-length albums – Through the Archedemon’s Head (I believe that you at least have seen its artwork) and Mountain. Their slow, heavy, vocals are harsh and wheezing – they are too traditional for death doom metal and too tough for trad doom.

However, I have checked the band’s status time to time and didn’t see any news for some period. My duty called me to write an email to Anguish, and David Eriksson (guitars) answered me. Here’s his interview, done with the help of Anguish’s vocalist J.Dee, who periodically appeared from the shadows. Continue reading »

AN NCS PREMIERE: PAGANIZER — “ANGRY ALL THE TIME”

Premieres 3 Responses »

Jun 122016

Of all the many musical projects of Rogga Johansson over an illustrious career, Paganizer is the oldest and longest-running, with the first demo (Stormfire) being released in 1998, followed by new releases or compilations almost every year since then. In this current year, the mighty Paganizer have again mounted a new death metal assault in the form of an EP fittingly named On the Outskirts of Hades, and today we bring you the premiere of its opening track: “Angry All the Time“.

What a great name for a song, and one that rings so true in the baleful light of Paganizer’s long and savage history. And it’s not only the title of the song that’s great. Continue reading »

SHADES OF BLACK: WAYFARER, BLACK CULT, HERMÓÐR, ADVERSUM, GROTESQUE CEREMONIUM, KING SATAN

Album Reviews, SHADES OF BLACK 6 Responses »

Jun 122016

I scattered three posts over three days during the last week recommending music in a blackened vein from a lot of premieres and releases I had accumulated on various lists that I keep — and I still didn’t exhaust everything I wanted to recommend. So yes, I’m throwing still more at you today, while resuming my habit of publishing these Shades of Black posts on Sundays.

I have an array of advance tracks from forthcoming releases (including one new video) and a new single, by a total of six interesting and diverse bands.

WAYFARER

In 2014, Denver’s Wayfarer released an excellent debut album (via Prosthetic) in Children of the Iron Age, and now Prosthetic has scheduled June 17 as the release date for the band’s second full-length, Old Souls. So far, three songs from the album can be heard on Bandcamp, and they are well worth your time. Continue reading »

THE REARVIEW MIRROR: OBTAINED ENSLAVEMENT

THE REARVIEW MIRROR 5 Responses »

Jun 122016

As I’ve mentioned before, I wasn’t listening to extreme metal in the late ’80s or the ’90s. With the help of some knowledgable guides, I’ve spent time over the last decade trying to catch up on what I missed. It’s a deep history, and the process of exploration isn’t nearly finished. Today’s Rearview Mirror focuses on my most recent discovery (with thanks to Jan K. once again for turning me on to the album you’re about to hear).

Obtained Enslavement was a black metal band formed in Stord, Norway, in about 1989. The band’s founding members included Pest (who went on to become the frontman for Gorgoroth both before and after Gaahl), guitarist Døden, and drummer Torquemada, and they were soon joined by a phenomenal keyboardist who used the name Heks. Together they recorded two demos and four albums before disbanding (though additional musicians also participated on some of the albums). Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD (PART 2): DAWN OF DISEASE, LJOSAZABOJSTWA, DIRE OMEN

Album Reviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 3 Responses »

Jun 112016

For the last four days running, I’ve been engaged in an attempt to catch up on new song and video premieres and recent full releases. The first three posts were devoted to black(ish) metal, and then yesterday I posted the first part of a Seen and Heard collection devoted to other corners of the underground.

My original plan for this Part 2 was to include a lot more music than you will actually find here, but I forgot about something I had agreed to do this morning with Ms. Islander, and so I’ve had to cut this short. Which means there will be a Part 3, probably tomorrow (along with another Shades of Black post), but maybe Monday.

DAWN OF DISEASE

Germany’s Dawn of Disease have a new album named Worship the Grave (which features cover art by Mark Cooper) that’s coming our way via Napalm Records on June 24. A couple of days ago, they revealed an album track called “The Sky Is Empty”, which is a real ass-kicker. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD (PART 1): ZEAL AND ARDOR, HOPELESS YOUTH, THRAWSUNBLAT, CONCRETE MASCARA, BENEATH THE STORM, JUPITERIAN

Album Reviews, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 10 Responses »

Jun 102016

I spent the last three days doing some catch-up work on recent premieres and releases from the realms of black metal, and today it’s time to shift gears and begin a series of round-ups of new music from other corners of the underground. My NCS comrade DGR is working on a round-up of his own, but even between the two of us we still won’t succeed in covering everything good that we’ve found over the last two weeks (when our round-ups were scarce).

Having said that, we may still threaten to overwhelm our readers with the volume of what we’re recommending. To give you a chance to catch your breath, I’m dividing my collection of recommendations into at least two parts, with the second one to come tomorrow (Saturday). I’ve also attempted to mix up the styles of music within each of these two parts in the hope of appealing to a broad array of tastes (and keeping you off-balance, of course).

ZEAL AND ARDOR

Zeal and Ardor is the name of a music project based in New York City. I’m calling it a “project”, because I have no idea who is behind it, or whether it’s the work of one person or more than one; I’ve searched and can find no background information at all. This mysterious project released a self-titled album in June 2014 that I did not know existed, and in mid-April of this year they released a second one named Devil Is Fine — which is unlike anything I’ve heard before. Continue reading »

AN NCS EP PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): INERT — “OBLITERATION OF THE SELF”

Album Reviews, Premieres, SHORT BUT SWEET No Responses »

Jun 102016

One week ago we premiered the title track from Obliteration of the Self, the debut EP by an insurgent death metal duo who call themselves Inert, and today we deliver a full stream of the entire EP, which the band are making available as a free download for a limited time.

For those who missed our earlier premiere, I’ll repeat the band’s origin story: Both members (guitarist Xavier Aguilar and vocalist/drummer Gustavo Garcia) knew each other for many years from the metal scene in Barcelona, Spain, but didn’t join forces in Inert until Xavi moved to Stockholm, Sweden. Perhaps something in the Swedish water infiltrated Xavi’s creative juices, but whatever caused this duo to join forces only after considerable distance separated them, we should be thankful for it. Continue reading »

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