Andy Synn Archives - Page 60 of 154

NIGHTMARER – MONOLITH OF CORROSION

Aug 262021

(Andy Synn takes some time out of his busy schedule to lavish praise on the new EP from Nightmarer, out tomorrow via Total Dissonance Worship)

I must admit, I was late to the party with Nightmarer.

I totally missed their first EP, Chasm, and didn’t get a chance to check out their first album, Cacophony of Terror, until well after practically everyone else in the world had long-since done so (and moved on).

So I told myself that, given the chance, I wasn’t going to make the same mistake again… and although I almost ran out of time (this EP actually comes out tomorrow, so we’re down to the wire here) I’m glad that I kept my promise, even if only by the skin of my teeth, as Monolith of Corrosion is easily the band’s best work yet.

FOR THE LOVE OF DEATH – DEVOID OF THOUGHT / GOSUDAR / TYPHONIAN

Album Reviews 1 Response »

Aug 252021

(Andy Synn would like to remind you all that only Death (Metal) is real)

I was doing an interview recently where I was asked “what makes a good Death Metal band?”

And, you know, for a moment I was stumped.

You see, they weren’t just asking about tuning, or tempo. Nothing so prosaic as that. They wanted something fundamental, something that transcended styles and sub-genres, something beyond technicality or brutality or melody.

But, eventually… it hit me.

It’s not about how fast you can blast, how low you can go, how huge you can groove… it’s all about love.

You heard me right. Underneath it all Death Metal is driven by love. Specifically the love of Death Metal.

And it’s the ability to convey and communicate that love, no matter what forms it takes, how technical or brutal, how melodic or symphonic, how dissonant or discordant or slam-tastic, which makes – or breaks – a band.

So let it be written, and let it be known… these three bands really love Death Metal.

WOMAN IS THE EARTH – DUST OF FOREVER

Album Reviews 2 Responses »

Aug 192021

(Here’s Andy Synn‘s take on the new album by long-time NCS favourites Woman Is The Earth, whose new album is released tomorrow on Init Records)

They say, whoever “they” are, that bands are supposed to mellow as they get older.

And while, certainly, this is true in many cases (the new Wolves In The Throne Room, for example, which I almost wrote about instead of this one, definitely feels that little bit more reflective and restrained, and all the better for it) it doesn’t seem like anyone bothered to tell Black Hills trio Woman Is The Earth, as their new album – their first full-length release since 2016’s Torch Of Our Final Night, and their first release of any kind since 2017’s Thaw EP – is more than a match for anything they’ve done before, and proof that their last few years spent in the musical wilderness haven’t dampened their inner fire.

SPEECH ACT – LETTERS ON EXTINCTION’S PIECE

Album Reviews, Exceptions to the Rule 2 Responses »

Aug 172021

(Speech Act are a new-ish band from North Carolina, and Andy Synn has fallen pretty hard for their debut album, which was released just last week, despite the fact that it contravenes our usual rules)

While all of us here at NCS share an abiding love for Metal, there’s definitely certain niches which we each seem to “specialise” in a little more than others.

Islander, of course, tends to stick more to round-ups than reviews, but – either way – if you see something you’ve never heard of, from a band who’ve either only existed for a hot minute or who’ve purposefully hidden themselves away in the shadows for the last several decades, then chances are they’ll be something he’s found and chosen to feature.

DGR, on the other hand, is our go-to guy for Grind, but also often swings the other way (as it were) by providing expert coverage of many of the big (or, at least, big-ish) and/or up-and-coming names from across the scene, and has proven himself a great pinch-hitter in those moments where the rest of us have dropped the ball on something we really should have written something about.

And, of course, then there’s our various (ir)regular contributors (some of whom are very irregular indeed), who each have their own special subjects which they like to focus on.

As for me? Well, while I cover just as much Death Metal and Black Metal (and its many permutations) as the next guy, chances are if you see something here that’s of the proggy or “Post-” variety, or that’s from the Hardcore end of the spectrum, or anything that features a lot of, gasp, clean singing, then it’s probably one of mine… like the album we’re about to discuss.

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): FAWN LIMBS — “DARWIN FALLS”

Album Reviews, Premieres 2 Responses »

Aug 112021

(Andy Synn wrote the following review and introduction of our full streaming premiere for the new album by the trans-Atlantic band Fawn Limbs, which will soon be released by Roman Numeral and Wolves And Vibrancy.)

Even those who love Metal at its most brutal, its most technical, its most chaotic, must admit, when push comes to shove and their back is against the wall, that the pursuit of extremity, pure extremity, purely for its own sake, ultimately leads to an inevitable and inescapable evolutionary dead end.

Or, should I say, an almost inescapable dead end… because while it’s true that over-specialisation will ultimately limit the growth of any species band – once you’ve attained a certain level of maximum brutality, terminal velocity, inhuman technicality, where else do you have to go? – certain artists, certain entities, have still managed to discover new and unique ways to survive, and even to thrive, while continuing to push their own limits in different, but no less extravagant, ways.

The secret to achieving this, of course, is realising that extremity isn’t a linear scale. It’s a spectrum. One which extends in multiple directions and allows for multiple interpretations and expressions of what it means to be truly “extreme”.

Which brings us, at last, to the new album from Fawn Limbs, which finds the terrible trio choosing a new, yet also disturbingly familiar, path to follow, which leads to a place called… Darwin Falls. Continue reading »

BURIAL IN THE SKY – THE CONSUMED SELF

Album Reviews 1 Response »

Aug 062021

(Andy Synn goes on a journey with the new album from Burial In The Sky – set for release on August 13 via Rising Nemesis Records – and finds that the band’s path leads to some unexpected places)

I don’t think anyone would deny that, for the last several years (and that’s just a very conservative estimate) the Techy/Proggy end of the Death Metal spectrum has been in rude and ruddy health.

But still… there’s a certain glaring absence, a spiralling void if you will, in the scene that’s been crying out to be filled ever since the most recent album by The Faceless revealed them to be a mere ghost (pun intended) of the band they once were.

Many have tried to step up, of course – often, unfortunately, by simply parroting, or parodying, the exact same sound which made Keene and co. famous – but so far only a few have even come close to being worthy.

However, while previous records from Burial In The Sky may have marked them out as being worthier than most to pick up that particular torch, what really surprised me about The Consumed Self (which is easily the best work of the band’s career) is that, if anything, it suggests that BitS plan on stepping into a very different pair of shoes.

Whose shoes exactly? Well you’ll have to wait just a little while longer to find out, because this review – much like the album which inspired it – is made up of two distinct halves.

THINGS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED (BUT SHOULDN’T)

Album Reviews 6 Responses »

Aug 042021

(Andy Synn draws your attention to four more albums from last month which he feels went overlooked)

Just like the month before, July was absolutely packed with new releases, from bands both new and old, many of which we simply didn’t get around to devoting as much time and attention to as we might have wanted.

As a result, picking just four albums to write about for this article was a serious headache, only slightly alleviated by the fact that the big man himself (Islander, not god, though I’ll forgive you for confusing the two) has written a little something about several of the bands I was considering featuring here – Anatman, Codex Nero, Serpentrance – in the last week or two.

It still wasn’t an easy decision though and so, if I have time, I may end up doing a second one of these columns just to assuage my guilt over not having written about so many new and up-and-coming artists this last month.

In the meantime, however, please enjoy this distinctly blackened edition of “Things You May Have Missed”.

THE SYNN REPORT (PART 136): ORYX

THE SYNN REPORT No Responses »

Jul 302021

Recommended for fans of: Primitive Man, Body Void, Iron Monkey

Variety, or so they say, is the spice of life. And since last month’s edition of The Synn Report was a rip-roaring Black-Thrash spectacular, I decided that this time around we’d go for a soul-crushing slow-motion apocalypse instead, courtesy of Colorada (by way of New Mexico) Blackened Sludge crew Oryx.

Since their formation in 2012, the trio – bassist Eric Dodgion, drummer Abigail Davis, and guitarist/vocalist Tommy Davis – have been churning out gut-wrenching grooves and bone-jarring jams, with every album (only three of which I’ll be covering in detail here today, due to the fact that ¾ of their hard-to-find self-titled debut was rewritten and re-recorded for 2014’s Widowmaker, with many people thus considering this their “official” first full-length) delivering wave after wave of filthy distortion and creepy, hypnotic hooks which make it feel like you’re bathing in solid, suffocating sound.

And what a sound it is… rugged and raw and unrelentingly bleak, Oryx are the sort of band whose every release should probably come with a public health advisory stating that their music isn’t suitable for anyone with a weak constitution.

Consider yourselves duly warned.

AGRYPNIE – METAMORPHOSIS

Album Reviews 2 Responses »

Jul 292021

(Andy Synn casts his ear over the latest album by one of his long-time favourite bands, Agrypnie, which is set for release next week via Art of Propaganda)

Here’s a piece of unsolicited advice for any budding writers/reviewers out there: one thing you have to realise – and remember – is that every band’s newest album is going to be the first time some people hear them.

So it’s no good just writing for the faithful. No matter how big or famous or well-established a band might be you can’t just assume everyone is going to be familiar with their work.

Case in point, despite its name, not much has changed for Agrypnie on Metamorphosis, as the album still offers the same tumultuous tapestry of searing blastbeats, stomping rhythms, and soaring leads which made records like 2018’s Grenzgænger, 2013’s Aetas Cineris, and so forth, such an enervating and electrifying experience.

But if you’re not already familiar with the band’s work, then that isn’t really going to mean much to you, is it?

So this is for all you new people – if you’re looking for something that’s both subtly “progressive” and seriously aggressive, something that sits somewhere between the introspective intensity of early Alcest and the melodic muscle of Insomnium (or, if you’d prefer, the blazing fury of Der Weg Einer Freiheit and the gleaming grandeur of Dark Tranquillity), then you should do yourself a favour and give this album a listen ASAP.

ARID – ARID

Album Reviews No Responses »

Jul 272021

(Prepare for a short, sharp shock to the system courtesy of Andy Synn‘s review of the recently-released self titled album by Crust-Punk-Death-Metal crossover crew Arid)

In an ever more complex, chaotic, and downright confusing world it’s always nice to stumble across something utterly unpretentious, knowingly uncomplicated, and unapologetically nasty… something that doesn’t care about tropes or trends, clicks or cliques, and which solely exists for the purpose of kicking ass and busting heads.

Because, you know what they say… busting makes me you feel good.

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