Undulation got cred from the hipster-ish side of the metal internet, and they frankly do check out all the boxes. For a Death Metal Band, they are more emotionally driven and the female vocalist does a lot to sell it. Scuttlegoat has an unhealthy interest in Death Metal.
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Dead Times – Dead Times Review
This self titled release is decidedly mood based, as it makes use of droning beats and looping synths that sound like calm organ-led melodies to evoke a facsimile of Devotional music. Industrialized devotion.
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Laurel Halo – Atlas Review
Do you need a palate cleanser after listening to all that Vortexectomy, Parasitic Ejaculation and Cattle Decapitation? Then I present to you, Laurel Halo, the musician behind Atlas, one of the best ambient records of 2023. “Ugh, ambient” you might say, but don’t be so quick to dismiss this beautiful and apprehensive kaleidoscope of sounds. Take a walk on the mild side.
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Exulansis – Overtures of Uprising Review
Doom isn’t for everyone. Nor is Doom that includes copious amount of chamber-influenced violin, rough ‘n’ tumble Blackened sprints, and sadperson, melodic crooning. But that’s exactly the overflowing platter of existential exploration that Oregon’s Exulansis deliver with Overtures of Uprising. Rise and eat up.
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Ragana – Desolation’s Flower Review
Creating music as a duo can present a paradoxical dynamic. It can be both easier, as there is only one other person to get in tune with, and more challenging when conflicts do arise, as the intricate interplay between two artistic visions will require a fine balance of compromise and creative synergy. Maria and Coley, the two members of Ragana, take turns on guitar, drums, and vocals, and since 2012 this approach has allowed them to maintain interest with their hybrid of unrefined Black/Doom Metal. Two hearts blast beat as one.
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Perky Macabre / SPÖoÖoKY STEVE – Halloween Kills Review
Perky Macabre never changes and has seemingly no desire to. If his music is supposed to be a joke, the literal zero supporters on most of his EP’s suggest that no one finds it particularly funny, either. Maybe that is why I can’t get him out of my head. Perky man, get out of my room!
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Nightmarer – Deformity Adrift: Reformed
The concept that the band might want to re-engineer and partially re-record such a well realized album before it is even a year old is at once intriguing and baffling. Can the deformity go even more adrift? Let’s see how well Nightmarer float with the anomalies.
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The Lion’s Daughter – Bath House Review
Bath House is a rawer experience that leans less on the synths, although they are still there – meaner, producing uneasy sounds that often recalls a wounded animal whining out its pain in the distance. The mood the combined elements strike is overall good and there are some hefty highlights here and there. Will Croque throw this album out with the bath water?
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Suffocation – Hymns From the Apocrypha Review
The band lost a lot when Frank Mullen decided to pursue being an actor, gifting the world his performance as the Manhattan Mutilator in James Balsamo’s Sexy Time. Mullen was an icon, much more than any of the other members could be. Yet, Mullen isn’t the most unique sounding vocalist in 2023 and it makes sense that the vocal performance of current vocalist Ricky Myers is noticeably different. Definitely not asphyxiated.
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Crypts of the Unknown: Loss – Horizonless
