SHADES OF BLACK: FAUSTIAN, VERZAUBER, ISHIMURA, VERTEBRAE, NECROBEAST, SVRM

 Album Reviews, SHADES OF BLACK  No Responses »
May 032026
 

(written by Islander)

As you can see, I have selected the music of six bands today, all of them coincidentally brandishing one-word names. I’m leading off with a group of singles from forthcoming records and concluding with a recently released EP that I think qualifies as “saving the best for last”.

In the case of those singles, I arranged them in a way that creates some musical connections (at least in my own head) between the opening pair and then a different kind of connection in another pair, with a ruinous barrage standing between the two groupings.

I’ll also take this opportunity to inform visitors that the coming week at NCS will create a bit of a break. Beginning on Wednesday I and my old friends Andy Synn and DGR will be in Seattle working on Northwest Terror Fest (they will be doing a lot of heavy lifting while I provide essential supervision and autographs). Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: MOTHER OF GRAVES, FACELESS BURIAL, SACRILEGIA, FAUSTIAN, EXORDIUM MORS

 Eye-Catchers, Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  No Responses »
Aug 122022
 

 

Yesterday I took the first step in a journey of a thousand miles — an only slightly exaggerated metaphor for the task of wading through all the recent songs and videos that might yield selections for these roundups. Today, as you can see, I managed to take a second step. By rough count that leaves about 2.5 million additional steps.

I’m beginning with artwork, unaccompanied by music (the column is called “SEEN and Heard”), but then moving into some new sounds and videos (and more cool cover art).

MOTHER OF GRAVES (U.S.)

This Indiana death/doom band released their debut EP in January of last year, and Todd Manning gave it a very good review for us. He concluded by hoping that a full-length would be close at hand. The hope is now fulfilled, because Wise Blood Records will be releasing the band’s debut album Where the Shadows Adorn on October 14th. And for that album the maestro Paolo Girardi created the stunning cover art you see above.

But what you see above is only half of the full painting. Here’s the complete work: Continue reading »