In 2020, Canadian Post / Avantgarde Black Metal collective Respire, released their memorable third album Black Line. A record with a spin on the genre that stood out as the works of a band who were comfortable in pushing the boundaries of what was possible with the Black Metal sound. Hiraeth now follows, four years in the making and diving deeper into the use of experimentation, with grand orchestral arrangements creating a sound that owes as much inspiration to the likes of their fellow countrymen Godspeed You! Black Emperor, as it does classic Black Metal bands such as, well Emperor.Continue reading
Tag Archives: blackgaze
ALBUM REVIEW: Show Me A Dinosaur – Plantgazer (2024 Reissue)
We are into the second half of 2024 and what a year it has been for new music! Even some of the reissues of older recordings coming out so far have been really good. The latest that deserves attention is the 2020 topical album about isolation and loneliness during the COVID Lockdowns, Show Me A Dinosaur’s Plantgazer (AOP Records). The Saint Petersburg post-Black Metal outfit toys with your emotions for nearly forty-five minutes. All while a “fictitious” man lives out his days in lockdown staring at his home plants, pondering about life under the new normal.Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Alcest – Les Chants de L’Aurore
Alcest began as a solo Black Metal project for French musician Neige at the turn of the millennium, and have since forged themselves a fine reputation as one of the pioneering bands of the Blackgaze sound. Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Deliria – Phantasm
Boy is it exhilarating when a group of meticulous and notable artists get together to show the world how music is done the right way!Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Glassing – From the Other Side of the Mirror
Hailing from Austin, Texas, Glassing is an intriguing band who have released some quality music across the albums Light and Death (2017), Spotted Horse (2019), and Twin Dream (2021). They’ve always shown that they are not one to be musically pigeonholed, as they convey a wide range of sounds from Post Metal to Hardcore, Sludge to Black Metal while often breaking up the chaos with moments of drone atmospherics. Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Acathexis – Immerse
Consisting of Jake, Dany, and Déhà, Acathexis unites members of Mare Cognitum, Los Males del Mundo, and Downfall of Nur together as an intercontinental unit based in Argentina, USA, and Belgium, In collaboration with Extraconscious Records, Amor Fati Productions proudly releases Acathexis’ second full length that is highly anticipated; entitled Immerse which is available on both CD and vinyl formats.
ALBUM REVIEW: Suldusk – Anthesis
Anthesis (Napalm Records) is the second full album from Australia’s Suldusk, originally the one-women project of vocalist/guitarist Emily Highfield, but now expanded into a full-band lineup including a violinist and three guitarists, plus a bass player and drummer.Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Olhava – Sacrifice
Two years after Russian post-Black Metal duo Olhava released Reborn, they return with Sacrifice (Avantgarde Music), their sixth full-length record which is no mean feat considering their self-titled debut only arrived in 2019.
So the word “prolific” might be somewhat of an understatement, as would the words “Long-Player” – as Sacrifice comes in at a whopping eighty-six minutes, quite the run time considering it features just four fully fledged tracks, and four synth/drone interludes. Continue reading
ALBUM REVIEW: Underdark – Managed Decline
With their second full-length record Managed Decline (Church Road Records), Underdark really have pushed the boundaries of the broader post-Black Metal sound by incorporating many different styles and influences, while also lyrically creating somewhat of a concept album that champions the working class in much the same way as Ashenspire’s 2022 album, Hostile Architecture.
ALBUM REVIEW: Svalbard – The Weight Of The Mask
I’ve been looking forward to wrapping my ears around Svalbard’s new material after catching snippets of what was to come when I caught them live supporting Russian Circles and Cult Of Luna over in Berlin earlier in 2023. And landing that European tour signified a fine start to a year which has also seen the Bristol based band sign for Nuclear Blast Records, with The Weight Of The Mask their first album for the prestigious new label and their first collection of new songs since the excellent When I Die, Will I Get Better? which was released on Church Road Records back in 2020.