SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: HETEROMORPHIC ZOO, SHIVER DOWN, AUTGER, MOÌNE, VOLLOÍOM

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  3 Responses »
Feb 032024
 

I’m still slowly trying to get back into the swing of things here. But it has been slow, and will continue to be slow for the next couple of weeks, thanks to continuing pressures from my fucking day job.

For example, the only metal I listened to over the last week was the music I’d committed to premiere. I also made almost no effort to scroll through the usual flood of NCS e-mails and other messages that have arrived since last weekend, or to open tabs for music to listen to later — “almost” being the operative word, because I did tuck away a few randomly noticed links.

Speaking of e-mail flooding, yesterday was another Bandcamp Friday, which resulted in an even bigger flood. I expected a vision of an old man herding animals two by two into a big wooden boat, a vision that never materialized because I made no effort to scroll through the in-box. I guess sometime this weekend I’ll at least give it a skim, in case any Nigerian princes are trying to share millions of dollars with me. Does that still happen?

Anyway, here are a few appealing underground things I did manage to check out beginning very early this morning. Continue reading »

SHADES OF BLACK: SZNUR, DISCORPORATE, A//PLAGUE, ANONYMOUS SKULL, NIGHTGOAT INVOKATE THE STARS, AUTGER

 Album Reviews, SHADES OF BLACK, SHORT BUT SWEET  2 Responses »
Jul 092023
 

Over the last few days, in between other things, I wandered down an underground musical path that took some very unexpected turns. Rather than focus on names that might be well-known, I focused instead on obscurity. I did recognize two names whose new music I explored (they begin and end today’s collection), but most I had never before.

In each instance, something about the music grabbed me, even when in some instances it initially seemed to pose a rude challenge to my ear drums. I hope you’ll find it an interesting musical odyssey, as I did, straight through to the fascinating surprise that’s waiting at the end. I don’t expect everything will appeal to everyone, but what does?

SZNUR (Poland)

As noted, I’m beginning with a name that already resonated well with me thanks to my discovery of the band’s third album, Dom Człowieka, soon after its release by Godz Ov War Productions about two years ago (which I enthusiastically reviewed here). Now Sznur‘s fourth album Ludzina is on the way from the same Godz Ov War. I haven’t yet heard all of it, but the two tracks currently streaming are high-octane fuel for the reptile brain. Continue reading »

OVERFLOWING STREAMS (PART 1)

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  No Responses »
Jan 162022
 

 

This weekend hasn’t been conducive to my NCS plans. I didn’t have time yesterday morning to post a round-up of new songs and videos, only time enough to share some artwork and news. During Saturday afternoon I plowed through a lot of new tracks and videos that mostly surfaced over the last week, and found a whopping 23 of them that I enjoyed to varying degrees.

Obviously, that’s way too many to post about, even for an OVERFLOWING STREAMS type of round-up. Some sifting was required. But sifting takes time, and for reasons I won’t bore you with it turns out that free time has been in very short supply this weekend. What to do?

Well, what I decided to do was just to say Fuck It and foist all 23 of those songs and videos upon you, with almost no commentary about the music and not even the usual links and artwork, just a small amount of info about the releases that include them. Even with that approach I’m dubious that I’ll get everything ready to go before I have to depart my computer for the rest of the day. So I alphabetized everything by band name and cut the group into two parts.

Part 2 might come tomorrow instead of later today. Sadly, I won’t have time for a SHADES OF BLACK column, though there is some black metal sprinkled through this giant collection, along with music across a big range of other sub-genres. Continue reading »

MYSTICISM IN EXTREME METAL (AND MUSIC FROM ESPÍRITO ALDEBARAN, EZOV, AND AUTGER)

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  7 Responses »
Aug 012018
 


Denis Forkas – “Study For Victory”

 

The Font of All Human Knowledge defines “mysticism” as “the practice of religious ecstasies (religious experiences during alternate states of consciousness), together with whatever ideologies, ethics, rites, myths, legends, and magic may be related to them”. Another source defines it as “belief that union with or absorption into the Deity or the absolute, or the spiritual apprehension of knowledge inaccessible to the intellect, may be attained through contemplation and self-surrender.” Ironically (or perhaps more accurately to some), an earlier version of the same source provides a second definition after the one just quoted: “belief characterized by self-delusion or dreamy confusion of thought, especially when based on the assumption of occult qualities or mysterious agencies”.

Mysticism as a significant source of inspiration is of course not unknown in extreme metal music, but I would say it’s a rarity. The kind of metal spawned by mystical beliefs, and used by its creators either to channel the insights and transformations brought about by mystical study, practice, or feeling, or to become a vehicle itself for the transformation of the self, seems to be found mainly in small and relatively obscure corners of the underground. I don’t mean to suggest that this is any different from what one might find in any other genre of music; it might even be true that mysticism plays a larger role in extreme metal than, for example, in hip-hop or country music — but of course I wouldn’t know, because I have tunnel-vision when it comes to my listening choices. Continue reading »