As the old saying goes, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Well, thirteen records into a career filled obsessively with Vikings and Norse mythology, and the only result Amon Amarth expects to change is the number of listeners. Judging from their continuing rise in popularity, that’s pretty far from insanity.
New Orleans is well known for its music scene spanning many genres. One of those genres that is not spoken of often enough would be bimboviolence and barbiegrind. Pioneers, Brat, have dropped another killer (literally) full-length in the form of Manslayer (Prosthetic Records). With decades of heavy music lyrics focusing on killing women, now it is time for the women to get in on some of the killing.
Death Metal has an endearing, crushing quality, but it can also be a genre where finding one’s own path can be difficult. Considering the hyper-aggressive nature that sometimes sacrifices songwriting for brutality, as it adheres to the sometimes monochrome, blood-red sounds of double bass and guttural vocals. Cartlidge manages to take on their own personality amid a genre that can be rather uniform in its sound and dynamic scope due to the common focus on aggression. Operating Altar (Everlasting Spew Records) is a weird concept album that has the crazy spirit of Acid Witch if they were not obsessed with Halloween. These guys are more focused on Carcass-like medical horror. Continue reading