Andy Synn Archives - Page 65 of 160

GRAVENCHALICE – SAMAEL

Oct 132021

(Andy Synn steps up once more to recommend the brand new album from Gravenchalice)

It is a simple and well-known truth that the House of Black Metal has many rooms, many hallways.

And which path you choose to follow, which doors you choose to open, will dictate whether or not you end up going deeper into the dark, or coming out the other side.

It is also true that many, if not most, of these pathways have been well-worn by the passing of countless feet over the years, such that, whichever way you choose to turn, it is difficult not to find yourself walking in the footsteps of those who have gone before you.

This was clear enough on last year’s Apparition, the short-but-striking debut from Florida’s Gravenchalice, whose blend of hypnotic riffs and pulse-raising rhythms was reminiscent – in the best possible way – of some of the best work of Mgla, Misþyrming, and their ilk.

But with Samael, the group’s second album in just over a year, Gravenchalice have clearly – whether by accident or design – stepped away from the route they were following on their first record and have found themselves walking a much darker, and less-trodden, path.

WAXING LYRICAL: DECLINE OF THE I

Interviews, WAXING LYRICAL 2 Responses »

Oct 092021

(Andy Synn brings us another episode in his series about lyrics in Metal, and today the responses come from A.K. of the French band Decline of the I, whose latest album Johannes was released last spring by Agonia Records.)

I know it’s been a little while since we last published one of these columns – that’s largely because I want the various artists involved to work on them in their own time and without feeling pressured from my end – but the wait has definitely been worth it, as today we’re talking to songwriter, lyricist, and all-round mastermind A.K. of Decline of the I (along with many other bands).

It’s a fascinating piece, mark my words, which touches on the conceptual underpinnings of the group’s first album trilogy, and their next one, as well as the unusual methods involved in composing each record’s vivid yet dreamlike lyrics. Continue reading »

THINGS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED (BUT SHOULDN’T)

RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC 2 Responses »

Oct 072021

(Andy Synn encourages you to check out four albums from last month which you might have missed)

Well then… how exactly do you try and address a month like September, which was, arguably, the biggest and busiest month of the year for new releases yet?

Hell, my initial shortlist (sorry, “short” list) for this column was a good eight or nine albums long, an even though I successfully spun one of them off as part of last month’s edition of The Synn Report, that still left me with more options than I could possibly fit into one article.

So what I ended up doing, to be frank, was just picking not-entirely-at-random and going with my gut for this latest edition of “Things You May Have Missed”, which ultimately ended up covering an intriguing array of artists/albums from across the (Extreme) Metal spectrum.

ATRÆ BILIS – APEXAPIEN

Album Reviews No Responses »

Oct 052021

(Apexapien, the highly anticipated debut album from Canada’s Atræ Bilis is out this Friday via 20 Buck Spin, and Andy Synn would like to tell you exactly why that should be so exciting)

It really is a pleasure to see/hear a band living up to their potential, isn’t it? Especially a young band who seemingly have the world at their feet and a bright future laid out before them.

Case in point, when I wrote about Divinihility, the debut EP from up-and-coming Canadian death-dealers Atræ Bilis, last year I noted that while the band clearly owed a great debt to some of the biggest and best names in the genre – describing their sound, at one point, as “a combination of beefy, Blood Red Throne inspired riffs, chunky, Suffocation-style slam parts, and unexpectedly Ulcerate-esque moments of eerie dissonance” – they still, even at this early stage of their career, managed to pull it all together in a way that implied greater ambitions, and possibilities, for the group than just being one of the crowd.

As you might imagine, then, I predicted (and expected) big things for the band’s next release, and now, finally, we get to see/hear whether that prediction was in any way accurate.

Spoiler alert: it was.

THE SYNN REPORT (PART 138): REDEMPTUS

THE SYNN REPORT No Responses »

Sep 302021

Recommended for fans of: Isis, Sumac, Old Man Gloom

The central thesis of this site has always been to primarily focus our attention and efforts on the underdogs, the underrated, and the underappreciated of the Metal scene.

Of course, exactly who qualifies for this is somewhat debatable, especially when it comes to the regular retrospective provided by The Synn Report, where we’re just as likely to go to bat for a “big” name whose work we think has been undervalued or unfairly maligned as we are for a relatively unknown band whose merits have gone unsung for far too long.

Today’s edition definitely leans more towards the latter than the former, as while Portuguese trio Redemptus aren’t an entirely unknown quantity, they’ve definitely been dwelling below the radar for far too long in my/our opinion, and it’s high time that more people were made aware of the group’s abrasively aggressive and asphyxiatingly atmospheric blend of sludgy Hardcore and punky Post-Metal.

SHORT BUT SWEET: ASHEN / THE CIRCLE / CULT BURIAL / ENSLAVED / GIANT OF THE MOUNTAIN / MALADIE / TEITAN / TRIBAL GAZE

SHORT BUT SWEET 2 Responses »

Sep 272021

(Andy Synn takes some time out of his busy schedule to celebrate some short but sweet releases by a variety of big names and new faces)

One unfortunate result of the endless scramble to stay on top of the relentless torrent of new album releases is that the humble EP often gets a little overlooked.

Which, obviously, is a real shame, because a good EP can often be just as fulfilling as an album in its own way, especially when a band uses it as an opportunity to explore a different side of themselves or to create something that works within the constraints of the format to tell a complete and fully realised story.

So while I’m working on a number of different full-length reviews (as well as the next edition of The Synn Report) I thought I might as well take a few moments to jot down a few quick reviews for some of the EPs I’ve enjoyed the most over the course of the year so far.

THE BEST OF BRITISH – LVCIFYRE / MASTIFF / SUGAR HORSE

Album Reviews 3 Responses »

Sep 232021

(Andy Synn would like to remind you that while his country may be regressing, their music scene definitely isn’t)

In case you haven’t been keeping up with the news, the good ol’ UK is currently, well… fucked… especially when it comes to international relations and trade with other countries.

Thankfully, however, our homegrown music scene is as strong as it’s ever been, which is why I’m here today to recommend three recent releases which are well worth importing into your ears.

And I won’t even charge you anything for the privilege.

SEND MORE PARAMEDICS – THE FINAL FEAST

Album Reviews 1 Response »

Sep 202021

(Please stand by for an emergency message from Andy Synn)

Attention! Atención! Achtung! This is not a drill.

The dead have risen and are voting Republican feeding on the flesh of the living.

The only way to stop them is to sever the head or destroy the brain.

I repeat: sever the head or destroy the brain.

Evidence shows that the virus spreads through direct contact with the afflicted, but there have also been reports of individuals becoming infected due to exposure to toxic gas, contaminated language, and the new album from Send More Paramedics.

So whatever you do, please, avoid all contact with this album.

RIVERS OF NIHIL – THE WORK

Album Reviews 13 Responses »

Sep 152021

(Andy Synn sits down to do “the work” with the new album from Rivers of Nihil, scheduled for release on September 24)

There’s a certain type of person – hell, for all I know it may just be the same individual over and over again – who responds to any article about Rivers of Nihil with the cut-and-paste comment “Death Metal’s Pink Floyd!”.

And while I can appreciate their enthusiasm (to a point) not only is it getting a bit tiresome (and also suggests that the commenter(s) in question don’t really know much about Pink Floyd) but it totally misunderstands what the band are trying to do.

Because the Pennsylvania quintet aren’t trying to be “Death Metal’s Pink Floyd”, or even “Death Metal’s King Crimson” (which would, arguably, be slightly more accurate, though still not right).

They’re just trying to be Rivers of Nihil. And each and every album they create is another opportunity for them to further define, refine, and redefine, exactly what that means.

EMPLOYED TO SERVE – CONQUERING

Album Reviews No Responses »

Sep 132021

(Andy Synn has followed the UK’s Employed to Serve through thick and thin over the years, so we knew he was the only choice to take on their upcoming new album, Conquering, set for release this Friday)

There’s a certain misconception that Metal/Hardcore fans don’t actually like it when the bands they love become successful.

And while I can understand where this misapprehension came from (there’s definitely a small but obnoxious cadre of loudmouths out there who act like this) the truth, as always, is much more nuanced.

It’s not that we don’t like bands becoming successful… it’s just that we’re tired of bands changing their identity, dumbing own their intelligence, and – yes, I’ll say it – selling out, in order to fit into whatever mass-produced, pre-packaged mould that the mainstream seems to think denotes “success”.

The caveat to this, of course, is that when a band manages to be successful on their own terms, doing what they want to do, rather than what others think they should do, we often love them even more, because they’ve shown that you don’t have to give up who you are in order to be make it “big”.

And, let me tell you now, Employed to Serve are exactly that sort of band, and while their new album looks set to raise their profile to a whole new level, they don’t seem to have had to sacrifice one iota of their intensity or integrity – or their core identity – in order to get there.

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