A sensuous, rapturous and thought-provoking collection of superior, post-rock instrumental music, Oath (Pelagic Records), from Japanese four-piece Mono, was recorded and mixed by late, great and already much-missed engineer Steve Albini, who passed away last month, aged 61.Continue reading
Three years removed from their debut full-length, Belgian bruisers Hippotraktor return with their sophomore effort, Stasis (Pelagic Records), a veritable blend of progressive and post- metal, with versatile vocals scattered all throughout the seven tracks. Continue reading
Former Cursed frontman Chris Colohan, is the driving force behind SECT’s dark take on Hardcore. Colohan might not be the band’s most well-known member (which would be Fall Out Boy’s drummer Andy Hurley), but regardless, it’s Colohan’s voice that sets apart their new album, Plagues Upon Plagues (Southern Lord) from the current resurgence of metallic Hardcore bands. Colohan’s husky croon gives a wink in the direction of Neurosis. His approach not only brings the articulated lyrics to the forefront but adds more depth to the dark tension of the music. When he does begin screaming as the punch of the riffs hits home, it has a greater dynamic impact. Continue reading
To try and place Four Stroke Baron neatly into a category of music is akin to trying to describe the Higgs field to a classroom full of ninth graders on the last day of school before summer break. Continue reading
A dark, dramatic, intense collection of relatively extreme music, Death.Horses.Black. (Listenable Records) is delivered with commitment and no small expertise by Belgian prog-stoner outfit My Diligence.Continue reading
If Death Metal on the extreme end of the heaviness meter is your thing, then Cutterred Flesh’s Love At First Bite (Transcending Obscurity Records) is worth a listen. Continue reading
When I received the news that I would cover a split between the US-based Häxanu and the Sweden-based Greve for review, I was immensely enthusiastic about it as I’ve always had high expectations of the craftsmanship of both Black Metal acts– all-round mystical, atmospheric, and heavy on belligerent blast beats. Continue reading
Having reemerged from its dank void of horror to release To Be Cruel in 2023, deconstructed-avant-doom entity Khanate continues to be pulled piece-by-piece from the mud, as the band’s third and fourth records — 2005’s Capture & Release and 2009’s Clean Hands Go Foul (Sacred Bones Records) — get shined and buffed for physical reissues. Continue reading
For quite some time now, Toronto has been the undisputed hotbed of Technical Death Metal, and what’s more, the sounds emanating from up in Ontario only seem to get better and better.Continue reading
Violins will and should always belong in various subgenres of Metal, and when done right, the addition of a classical string instrument can transport listeners to vast transcendent landscapes – see Dawn Ray’d (RIP).Going even further and introducing new or grossly underutilized techniques can (and often does) represent a beacon of freshness for both the musicians and fans alike.Continue reading