Ever met an Icelandic black metal fan? You know the kind that insists that the origin of a band, despite the advancements in communication technology, fully informs their sound — transforming music into something akin to a champagne than an artistic discipline that can be studied, imitated, and paid homage to. No, of course you haven’t. That’s why you’re hear, ready to read a deathgrind review. Good taste comes to those who grind.
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Aseitas – Eden Trough Review
Experimentation is abundant in the extreme bounds of metal today. While a lot of bands look for something worthwhile by trying odd techniques, it’s easy to lose sight of working on a defining sound, something that makes a band have that special pull divorced from just pure technique. Aseitas had that from the start. But it’s been a long, trough road for them.
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Monument of Misanthropy – Vile Postmortem Irrumatio Review
I don’t know where my fascination with serial killer themed metal comes from. Sure, I had a phase where I was reading up on them obsessively as a teen, before serial killers became an interest of primarily middle aged moms and I became ashamed admitting it. Join Scuttlegoat as he reignites his titillation for Monument of Middle Aged Mom’s!
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Sumac – The Healer Review
Brian Cook’s bass rumbles intently along in “Yellow Dawn”, Aaron Turner’s howls and screeching guitar solos are caustic, and Nick Yacyshyn’s drums regularly steal the show with powerfully precise hits. Sounds like our alligator is hungry for some SUMAC.
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Octoploid – Beyond the Aeons Review
Somewhere deep in a Finish archipelago on a breezy and mild summer’s day a smorgasbord is taking place. At a wooden table surrounded by many Finns sits a metal loving bat. Looking more closely he has a huge grin on his face as 70s aesthetic sauce is dripping all over his chicken parm sandwich. Will you join him? Is this the sauce of the summer?
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Diskord / Atvm – Bipolarities Review
Atvm and Diskord seem to approach the medium of the split with an awareness of its usual pitfalls. Bipolarities is album length and the title hints at the fact that indeed, this is an album of two distinct halves. One band says they play nice together, and the other claims that the first is lying. What’s a Goat to believe?
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Sear Bliss – Heavenly Down Review
There is space for many more brass instruments in metal. We have violins galore and keys by the score but not enough brass. Happily, Sear Bliss understand this. That’s why they have a trombonist. Come, everyone, let’s look at Anti-Peat’s tromboner.
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Botanist – Paleobotany Review
Hey look, it’s Botanist, the band with the hammered dulcimer! A consequence of a world filled brimful of good metal bands is that bands become known by their unique thing. Paleobotany, though, is a concept album dedicated to the marvels of the gigantic plants that existed before the Chicxulub asteroid so rudely interrupted their existence. Come on in and see if this release is as big a hit as that!
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Incipient Chaos – Incipient Chaos Review
Playing a no-frills approach to black metal, Incipient Chaos has the potential to become a refreshing, venerable force in the scene beset by cheap, middling melodic black metal and bad raw black metal that people attempt to convince others is good. And, thankfully, their eponymous debut delivers the goods and brings a fresh batch of fast, mean black metal. Well, so says the Cosmo anyway…
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Crypts of the Unknown: Lorn – Arrayed Claws
