Facing his computer clad in a sexy troubadour cosplay, Goat can no longer deny who he is — he loves female fronted trad metal. The only thing that can tear his eyes away from Stacey Savage is another female fronted band. Sarabeth Linden from Tower steals the stage, let there be female fronted trad metal!
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Délirant – Thoughteater Review
Enigmatic black metal entity D.B (Negativa, Hässlig) has returned with Thoughteater, his second album under the Délirant moniker. Mixing nightmare atmosphere with blackened dissonance, Délirant sounds like a fever-dream combination of Andavald and Deathspell Omega with a few dashes of unsettling ambience. Has Cosmo found yet another reason to sleep with his lights on?
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Dissocia – To Lift the Veil Review
How a genre that is built on experimentation and outside the box songwriting ends up sounding all the same and using the same tricks just baffles me. But once in a while, an act shows up and makes me pay attention because of their knack for individual expression. Did Dissocia just look at the handbook and throw it out the window?
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Kazea – I, Ancestral Review
Our resident Post-Queen, Inksterium, may not realize always that post-genres call for her. However, Kazea, a Gothenburg-based trio formed by ex-members of Orochen and Hellsongs, provide a lived-in force to their debut experience I, Ancestral. But all post and no play can still made the Queen a dull monarch. Can Kazea possibly please the Crown?
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Pissgrave – Malignant Worthlessness Review
Metal bands often aim to be mysterious and ambivalent. They feature cover art that is truly great, with hidden meanings, and band names that make you wonder how they came up with such clever names and what they really mean. Today, however, I am going to write about Pissgrave—the exact opposite of what I just described. Their band name and album art advertise exactly what you’re going to get: death.
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Ereb Altor – Hälsingemörker Review
One of the best trends in metal right now is the recent spate of black-trad hybrids. It’s a welcome revival of a combination with a long history that makes a ton of sense as their shared love of drama goes together like blood and ice. Ereb Altor know what I’m talking about — they take their sanguine cocktails on the rocks just like Anti-Peat.
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Sabhankra – Nocturnal Elegies Review
Album names shape expectations, and Nocturnal Elegies suggested something atmospheric. Sabhankra’s mix of melodic black metal, folk, and even thrash reinforced that idea — but they defied expectations.
Sometimes, it’s good to be wrong.
Fleshbore – Painted Paradise Review
Fleshbore don’t reinvent anything on Painted Paradise, instead sticking to the tried-and-trve formula of machine-gun blasts, rapid-fire vocals, and riffs for days. Who needs a revamp when the wheel is ablaze?
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Häxkapell – Om jordens blod och urgravens grepp Review
Häxkapell leans into a sound that is unmistakably Scandinavian. But Om jordens blod och urgravens grepp is also a black metal album that pays attention to making most of the trek through this earthy forest path memorable. Can its sadboi chords cast a spell on you?
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Crypts of the Unknown: Khonsu – The Xun Protectorate
