Armchair rhetoric on extreme metal
Wreathed in Dead AngelsOut 25th April on Hells Headbangers I was beginning to think that Profanatica were flagging by the time ‘Rotting Incarnation of God’ came out. With retrospect one could appreciate the intention behind the choice to veer toward a more considered, ambient doom iteration of their signature ferocity. But given the unique barbarism... Continue Reading →
Chasms of Ash and InequityOut 9th March on Blackened Label Records Metal Archives genres are an interesting thing. The site goes out of its way to stay as broad as possible. I generally agree with this policy. I may even go broader (there are only four metal genres and I will die on that hill).... Continue Reading →
Screaming with no face The Englishman’s reflex for emotional repression is unmatched. But even he will experience particularly challenging periods, periods liable to breed emotions faster than they can be slaughtered. The obnoxiously clement weather mocking any attempts to wallow in peace. In such times, his fine tuned ability to kill emotions in their cradle... Continue Reading →
Vortex of the DestroyerOut 28th March on NoEvDi Records One could read Svartsyn as a direct descendant of ‘De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas'. In the sense that this is one way of achieving a “post riff” form of black metal without leaning on ambience. Rudimentary riffs are still present and correct, but their existence is now... Continue Reading →
Hateful Draugar from the UndergroundOut 28th March on Darkness Shall Rise Synthesises elements of early Enslaved with Burzum to great effect, but veers away from the detached cinematic narratives of the former, into something closely resembling the understated folk narratives of Isengard. The result is a satisfying reaffirmation of black metal as both an atmospheric... Continue Reading →
Master of the Nebulous ReachOut 14th March, self-released Despite the unevenness of Dis Pater’s body of work, he remains an artist I enjoy following closely. This latest EP goes some way to remind me why I am enamoured more with the idea of Midnight Odyssey – and indeed the other projects he has dabbled in... Continue Reading →
Sprung has spring There’re flowers everywhere. Something my son, who recently learnt how to say flower, repeatedly reminds me of every time we pass a dandelion, which is many. Rain still pelts the soil with sporadic and utilitarian urgency. But the pauses between showers are now defined by glorious stretches of sunshine, its inroads into... Continue Reading →
High Speed Death: Damned GenesisOut 7th March on La Caverna Records (originally released in 1991) This restored and remastered version of a previously lost demo reveals an Italian outfit working at the peripheries of thrash’s transition into death metal. I am unable to find out if this material was written prior to 1991. As it... Continue Reading →
Sadist: Something to PierceOut 7th March on Agonia Records If you want to understand the paradox of progressive metal, studying the career of Sadist can be highly instructive . The more influences the genre imbibes, the broader its expressive range, the march toward unchecked eclecticism, the more its core identity recedes into a distant memory.... Continue Reading →
Voodus: Emanating SparksOut 28th February on Shadow Records/Regain Records Modestly melodic Swedish black metal that ups the game as far as their own standards are concerned. The overall packaging is still thoroughly domesticated, renting a generous helping of ideas from ‘The Somberlain’ whilst flattening off its longform ambition in favour of crowd pleasing speed thrills,... Continue Reading →
Hate Meditations 