"I haven’t got a speech..." July 24, 2015

Raum Kingdom
by Raum Kingdom

Like Tool? Like sludge? Well now you like Raum Kingdom. Just accept it. This 30 minute EP from Ireland is filled to the brim with effects-laden, winding Adam Jones riffs and soft, meditative Maynard singing; but also crushing waves of crunchy distortion and angsty howls. The careful melding of ...

Psychological Punishment July 23, 2015

ἀηδής
by NOÛS

I'll be brief. I don't want to deprive you one second of these 20 minutes of punishment. One time I tried to listen to this in the dark. When I regained consciousness I was missing several fingernails and about a pint of blood. NOÛS doesn't “play guitar.” They waited by the Sam Ash dumpster and...

Ethan McCarthy is a Busy (Primitive) Man July 23, 2015

Permanence
by Vermin Womb

So if you haven’t heard of Ethan McCarthy, the time to correct that is now. One of the growing names in underground extreme music, there is no lack of content available with his name attached. Most widely known for blackened sludge act, Primitive Man, Ethan “ELM” has also fronted Clinging to the T...

New Recruits Welcome July 22, 2015

Vast, Loathsome
by Drouth

Atmospheric death metal and blackened sludge have been gaining dominance in my library over the past year, and Drouth's latest EP fits nicely into the latter. New recruits are always welcome in my army of dismal debauchery. But like most music that earns my permanent hard drive space, especially i...

Change of Pace July 22, 2015

Broken on the Wheel
by Headcasey

While my interests lie primarily in different modes of death and black metal, I try to be an equal opportunity reviewer. As such, I welcome to occasional sound that may not quite fit in my wheelhouse. So is the case for Headcasey's latest set of tracks. And while I may not be the best person to d...

The Haves and Have Nots July 21, 2015

The Ache of Want
by Anopheli

From the first moments of “Awoken,” I could hear that this was something a bit different. Primarily, the vocals are deeper and bit more hardcore and black metal compared to the previous demo's preference towards post-hardcore shouting. The shrieks and growls help to differentiate, but also only fu...

Gave me the DT's...Dark Tranquillities that is. July 20, 2015

Future: The Return
by Silence Lies Fear

When MetalSucks posted Silence Lies Fear on their list of underlooked albums, they had me at "Dark Tranquillity." The comparison is more than fair, with this album's somber take on melodic death metal that feels more about scope than aggression. Insomnium seems like another strong parallel and ope...

Dagobah System? July 19, 2015

Enter the Dagobah Core
by Umbah

Umbah is a...um...we'll just simplify for now and say progressive industrial act from the UK. Arranged and performed entirely by Cal Scott, this is extreme music with a penchant for the avant garde. Ministry riffs crash into electronics, often bizarre vocal outbursts, and sporadic pace changes. T...

Overwhelming Isolation July 18, 2015

Vermis
by Ulcerate

What is the sound of bones crunching? Complete annihilation? The planet imploding in on itself in a blaze of hellfire? Ulcerate. And what a great name. Few bands truly capture their sound so well in a single word, but on their 2013 album, Vermis, and virtually their entire discography, Ulcerate...

A Dark Future July 17, 2015

Vorage
by Vorage

If it hasn't become blatantly obvious, I have come to really love Portal. Something about the tightly coiled tentacles of choking, blackened, technical death just does it for me. It seems pretty clear that Vorage shares my joy in Lovecraftian black holes. This self-titled EP is chock full of diss...

Instrumental Post-Indietronicore July 16, 2015

The Debutantes
by Cotillion

I'm a fool for genre fusions. Yeah, thrash metal is cool, but what happens when you throw a little jazz in the mix? Or smash black into baroque? It's these fun retreats from the norm that separate a good act from a fresh one. Cotillion may have the the marks of something in its infancy, but that...

By Power of Grayskull... July 15, 2015

Bastards of the Universe
by Skeletor

Remember when thrash metal didn't have to be deadly serious all the time? If like me you yearn for the days of party-time bands like Exodus, you need to get in here. Skeletor (nuff' said with that name), including self-described Paul Baloff worshiper Bram Peters, are here to drink cheap beer and t...

Oomph Factor July 14, 2015

Negate the Infinite and Miraculous
by Pale Chalice

It’s USBM time again, and this one is fast and hard. At full speed, Palice Chalice can sound a lot like early Enslaved, as with the opening of “Shaking Nerves and Vacuous Spheres.” With their new album, Negate the Infinite and Miraculous, the group rises from the vile depths of unlikely Oshkosh, W...

A Calmer Approach July 12, 2015

In Times
by Enslaved

It is truly amazing how much Herbrand‘s clean vocals have evolved and improved with each release. As much as I love their dark, depressive qualities on Isa, that was the voice of a boy. With RIITIIR and now In Times, these are the mature tenors of a man. Whether it is the result of some professional...

Riffage July 11, 2015

Bloodshot Dawn
by Bloodshot Dawn

After listening to (and loving) Bloodshot Dawn's 2014 release, I was encouraged to check out their debut as well. With all of the new music constantly flying by, I was not incredibly enthusiastic about this at first, but right about the time that “Godless” kicked in, I had very few regrets. The ri...

Set Sail July 10, 2015

Despair, Erosion, Loss
by Alaskan

How about taking a journey today? Drive with the windows down on a desert highway. Set sail through an ocean storm. Climb to the peak of an icy mountain to witness the sunrise. Alaskan provides the soundtrack to all of these things. It's sludge for the meditative type. But you can skip the y...

Inked With the Blood of Their Enemies July 9, 2015

Rite of Ascension
by Vacivus

So you really like Portal, but you either need more or want something a little more straight-forward? I got this. Hellish death vocals from the abyss? Check. Blackened take on technical death metal? Check. Soul-sucking atmosphere? Double check. Just unravel those snake-like compositions and ...

No Wannabes Here July 8, 2015

Black Flesh Redemption
by Demonical

Leave it to the Swedes to keep the oldschool alive. Between the raw distortion, larger than life hooks, and crushing drums; some of these tracks could have been At The Gates outtakes. Such is the sound of Demonical's latest EP, Black Flesh Redemption. After dropping a few well-recieved albums, th...

Google Translate... July 8, 2015

De Doden Hebben Het Goed
by Wiegedood

I assure you, I don't normally listen to this much atmospheric black metal, but it just keeps coming through the cracks this year. No matter how much I caulk, it just keeps seeping through. Oh well. What keeps filling the buckets is mostly quite pleasant. Enter Wiegedood. I am surely mispronoun...

Be One With The Groove July 7, 2015

Painless
by Sanzu

Sanzu is Australian death metal with a touch of djent and deathcore. The vocals are half Jens Kidman, half Wayne Static. The compositions may sound a bit chuggy on the surface, but there is plenty technical going on with the timing. The very modern production fits the somewhat robotic-sounding qu...
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